The Fallout
by Guardian Amulet
Summary: 25 years after the death of Lois and Jimmy in Gotham, Superman's attack on the city in revenge has left the world paralyzed with fear of the Meta human heroes. In this climate, a new threat is beginning to rise COMPLETE Reviews welcome
1. Chapter 1 The new face of Heroism

The senate had just gone for recess, and he walked over to the office down the hall, the office reserved for one of the current senators from the state of California. Currently, that was this man; Hal Jordan, former Air Force pilot, governor, now senator- and Green Lantern. Though, of course, the latter was a secret, and increasingly the less used persona. As he walked into the antechamber of the office, he looked at the woman seated behind the desk, busily typing away at the computer in front of her. She was attractive, with long hair and a slight face; most of the more unscrupulous senators- and coincidentally, the ones he'd prefer to route from an office they do not deserve on account of it- would have tried to make a pass at her. Hal trusted her; trusted her with even his darkest secret, a secret that could topple the very foundation of the government. That trust was enough.

"Good afternoon, Claudia," he told her.

"Good afternoon, sir," she replied, looking up. "The file you requested is on your desk."

"Thank you, Claudia," Hal said. "Make sure I'm not disturbed, unless it's important."

"Yes, Senator." Hal walked past her, into his office, and shut the door. The office was comfortable, with a carpeted floor, a large well-made desk along a wall of windows. Sitting on his desk was a brown folder, the top laced down. Stamped on the folder itself were various messages, top secret, for eyes only, and such nonsense. As the chair of the subcommittee on Meta-human affairs, Hal needed the file to prepare himself for a speech he was going to need to give in a week. He wanted to know the latest information, the information he knew he would be smacked with when it came time to make his presentation- whatever _that_ was going to be.

The file itself was thick, and inside were stacks of papers, some of them blackened out to hide information protected by a security level even above Hal's own. Within were various mentions of Meta-human activity in the United States. Most of them centered on Metropolis and Gotham. It also had a mention of a Meta-human being apprehended in Seattle.

_Seattle?_

Hal paused, going back to read over the entire report. Mentioned in there were reports from eyewitnesses interviewed after the fact, claiming to also see a young woman, approximately between the ages of 17 and 22, garbed in green and black, wielding a bow with incredible accuracy. Immediately following the report, all but tacked onto it, was another report. The office of Homeland Security was investigating what it was calling a 'disturbing' trend on the internet. There were articles popping up all over the internet and at college campuses around the country demanding fair treatment of Meta-humans. They were all credited to an unknown person or persons calling themselves 'Concerned Student'.

Frowning, Hal went over this second report, a feeling of dread settling in the pit of his stomach. He traced the dates of the articles at the colleges, and found the first printing in the University of Washington's campus newspaper.

The green-clad archer and inflammatory articles were all the proof Hal needed, even though it was circumstantial; he knew Ollie lived in Seattle, and he knew he had a daughter, old enough (or young enough, depending on one's point of view) to be the archer. And ten to one odds, she was up to her father's old tricks.

"Damn it, Ollie," Hal whispered under his breath. "You didn't have to raise her to be _your_ daughter." He hit the intercom a little harder than he needed to. "Claudia?"

"Yes, Senator?" her voice came back from the speaker.

"Are there any important votes coming up between now and Monday?"

"Your schedule is on your desk," she said. Hal looked over it quickly- typical day to day tedium. Nothing of worth, nothing he couldn't miss.

"I'll be leaving for an extended engagement this weekend," he said. "Bring the car around, please."

"Of course, sir." The click on the other side told him that she had pulled her finger off the button. Hal took the file and put it into his briefcase, making absolutely certain to lock it. He would need to travel home, then book a ticket to Seattle. It was about time to go visit his old friend.

"You are going to stay here."

"Forget it," Olivia growled back at the man who stood in front of her. He was twice her age or more; she wouldn't be able to tell if she tried. His mere gaze would have caused men to run in fear, especially any man older than thirty, but the young woman stood there, unafraid. She had braved the dangers of the overrun ruins of Metropolis, had fought Amazons over the Atlantic Ocean, even braved the mysterious island of Themyscira to report back on what was happening there. She was Olivia Queen, the new Green Arrow, and she wasn't about to back down from an argument, even an argument with Superman. True, he had lost his mind twenty five years ago, before she had been born; he had killed a lot of people in Gotham, had destroyed most of the Justice League, and caused the current laws against heroes and Meta-humans. He seemed to have changed since the time however, had grown more…cold, uncaring, but less prone to anger at the same time. Though, the hole he punched straight through an Amazon would have her in doubt…

"It's too dangerous for you," he said.

"But it wasn't too dangerous to send me there scouting. Alone, I might add," she said, folding her arms in front of her, still holding her bow.

"Without any powers, you'll be helpless," he insisted again.

"But I wasn't helpless before," Olivia said. "Fighting off Bizarro in Metropolis, taking out the Amazons in Gotham and over the Atlantic, even getting back with news that Gorilla Grodd's the one who's taken control of them in the first place."

"You're staying here," his female companion spoke up. "There's no room for discussion. Let's go, Clark." Olivia watched helplessly, her fists curled tightly, as Superman and Wonder Woman went streaking off. And she was left alone in her house.

More than frustrated, Olivia went upstairs, into her room, slamming the door. She heard a slurred complaint from her father, but ignored it. She sat down hard at her desk, opening her laptop and powering it on. If she couldn't help fight physically, she would fight the masses with her mind. She called up her word processor, beginning work on a post, one designed to inflame those who read it, calling for a return of the heroes who had once protected the earth with their lives. It was time to get over what had happened. A culture that lived in constant fear of its past was a stagnant one, dead. She had no other way to fight.

As she was finishing up the last few sentences, she heard the doorbell downstairs. Knowing that she couldn't depend on her father to get it, she finished up quickly, posted to the internet, and started downstairs. Again, she heard her father shout something, but she ignored it. Heading downstairs, the doorbell rang again. "I'm coming!" she said in exasperation.

Finally, she reached the door and opened it. Standing there was a man in a very nice suit, a long black rain slicker overtop. He had gray, close-cut hair and a lined face, and held a briefcase in his right hand. "Good to see you, Olivia," he said.

Just as she was about to ask how he had known her name, recognition hit. He was older by some ten years, but she still recognized him. "Uncle Hal!" she said, smiling for what seemed the first time in weeks.

"Mind if I come in?" he asked.

Olivia moved out of the way. "How have you been, Senator?" she chided, as he put the briefcase down on the chair.

"Life's been fair," he said. "You look good. Where's your father?"

Olivia rolled her eyes. It had been ten years; he didn't know. "He's upstairs," she said.

"I'll be down in a few minutes," he said. "We need to catch up."

"It's going to be a little more than a few minutes, even if he's coherent," she muttered. Hal just looked at her, then continued up the steps. As he left, Olivia looked at the briefcase. The lock was overly sophisticated, even more so than the lock she had found on the lead box of Kryptonite in Metropolis. She decided to leave it be; better not to mess with whatever Uncle Hal had hidden in there. Besides, the sudden bash that she heard upstairs warranted her attention more.

As she ran up the stairs, she could see that the door to her father's room had been blown open, and was hanging off one of its hinges. Inside, she heard her father moving. "Well, Hal F'king Jorrrdan," he slurred, his voice barely recognizable. Olivia stood in the doorway, leaning against the jam, arms folded. Her uncle stood in front of her, just off to the side enough to see her father lying on the bed, a bottle of Wild Turkey almost finished in his right hand. He didn't have a left one, not anymore. "What're you d'ing herrre?"

"Oliver," Hal said, calm as anything. From his right hand came a green glow, a glow of energy that formed into a hand. It grasped the bottle and wrestled it from her inebriated father. "Good to see you too."

"H'y, that's a p'rfectly good bottle'o booze," he said.

"Not anymore. Time to wake up, Ollie." The hand poured the rest of the bottle over his head. If it hadn't been her father, Olivia might have laughed. It then picked him up by the collar of the shirt and dragged him into the bathroom, where she heard the water running . . . and her father's infuriated shouts.

Hal turned to her. "How long has he been like this?"

"Past three years," she said, lowering her head. "You're not going to drown him, are you?"

"He won't drown," Hal told her. "Where's Dinah?"

Olivia turned away. "Why don't you go ask Aquaman?" she growled sourly. That elicited some shock from him.

"Where is she?" he asked again.

"Last I heard, Batman traced her to Atlantis."

"You should get me up to speed on what's happening," he said. The sound of water ended, and the green glow retracted into the ring he wore.

"Well, there's Amazonians tearing a swath across the planet," she said. "Being led by Gorilla Grodd."

"Grodd?" he asked. "I didn't think he had the power to control that many people, let alone Amazonians."

"We think he might have some sort of device to enhance his abilities. So Superman told me."

"Superman?"

Olivia sighed. Her fathers had come out of the room, and sat down again, his long hair, more gray than blonde anymore, dripping wet. "Yeah. He came back when Wonder Woman was injured. Then I was told to sneak onto Themyscira and find out why the Amazonians were attacking. Superman and Wonder Woman are on their way there now to stop him. Mom left when Superman showed up. We tracked her to Spain, then Portugal. I went off to Themyscira while Batman traced her to Atlantis. I don't know where he went after that."

"Wait a minute," Ollie said from the bed, "your mother's missing?"

Olivia bit down hard. "Yes, pop. Haven't you wondered why you've been passing out and waking up alone the past few days?" she snapped angrily. He looked away.

"So, I hear news of an archer in town," Hal said. "Woman in green, about your age."

Olivia shrugged. "Someone's gotta fight the good fight, illegal or not."

"They're also posting inflammatory remarks on the internet about Meta-human rights. Trying to change the politicians in DC."

Olivia shrugged, unable to hide the smile of satisfaction. "Someone's gotta do something about it," she said. "It's about time we stopped being scared, especially now that we have a real threat."

"You're being noticed in Washington," Hal said, and she heard a hint of concern in his voice. "You may want to lay low for a little while."

Olivia sighed. He was right; getting herself caught wasn't going to help the cause any. Besides, she couldn't help anyone from prison. "After we go find mom."

Hal nodded, then looked over at her father. "We're going to need your help, Ollie. Get shaved, put on some deodorant. Get cleaned up. You're a mess."

Ollie grunted in annoyance. "Gimme an hour." He went into the bathroom, and Olivia went downstairs.

"So, show me this bow of yours," Hal requested.

"It's in the lab downstairs," she said, leading him down into the basement. There was a small bench in the back corner with equipment on and near it, as well as the makeshift hospital bed that Wonder Woman had been in while she was injured. She picked her bow up off the rack and handed it to her uncle. He wasn't an uncle by blood or anything, but she had known him since she was a child. If she had been baptized, he would have been her Godfather, but her own father had gone on a tirade about organized religion on earth. He would know, however; he _had_ been dead at least once before.

"Hmm," he moaned thoughtfully, holding it out with one hand as he ran a green light from the ring over it with the other. "Lots of sophisticated technology in here. You built this yourself?"

Olivia smiled, as he handed it back to her. "Yep." As she turned to put the bow back on the wall, Hal's phone rang.

"Yes?" She could only hear part of the conversation. "I'm at a friend's house. Yes. All right. Get as much information on it as you can." His tone was cold, almost...surgical. Something was wrong. "Olivia, where's the TV?"

"Living room," she said, as she led him upstairs, turning on the TV. Hal grabbed the remote and changed the channel.

An anchorman took up the screen now. "This is Fox Rusher from LNN News," he announced. "We have this story just in, we have a report of a massive earthquake in the country of Morocco. Eyewitnesses are reporting that a strange red beam of light was seen in the area just before the quake. The area has been devastated, and it is estimated that the death toll will be in the hundreds of thousands." Just then, a graphic of the earthquake's location and magnitude were shown. Olivia felt her throat tighten. It was Africa.

"Grodd," she whispered.

Hal looked at her, then turned back to the stairs. "Ollie, you better hurry it up."

Rusher was back on again. He was going on again about the quake, when he paused, and was most obviously listening to the earpiece he wore. "This just in, a _second_ earthquake has been reported, this one in Kashmir. Again, witnesses are reporting a red beam of light just before this quake."

"Grodd may already have started his attack."

Hal shook his head. "No, I doubt it. He wouldn't attack such obscure places. He'd go after new York, London."

Olivia nodded. "I did remember hearing him say he would attack New York first," she remembered audibly.

"Looks like my niece is withholding information."

"I'm not meaning to," she said. Just then, realization made her eyes go wide. "If those places were hit, that means that the other Amazonians are heading back for Themyscira," she said. "Superman and Wonder Woman are going to be surrounded."

"You know where Themyscira is, Olivia?" Hal asked.

She shrugged. "Ehh...Supes took me there once. I think I can remember the way."

"Good enough. Grab your bow."

She ran down the stairs, grabbing her bow and quickly pulling on the black body suit, throwing on her green cloak and hood. Once she ran back upstairs, she once again barely recognized her uncle; he looked much younger, dressed in black and green, a small green mask over his eyes and temples. "Are you ready?" he asked.

Olivia nodded, and quickly she found herself surrounded by a large green bubble, and was being pulled through the air behind her uncle at an incredible speed. At first, she felt her heart leap up into her throat, but she soon calmed. "Thanks for the warning, Uncle Hal," she said.

"We're in costume, you don't call me that," he said sternly.

"Then what do you want me to call you?"

"Green Lantern. Or Lantern. Or just uncle."

"Lantern. Got it," she muttered. "You know, you could have warned me first. You know I hate flying."

"You shouldn't complain so much," he muttered to her.

"Well, excuse me! If you'll remember, pop died in a plane crash, and I nearly did ove-" Just then, a large green gag appeared over her mouth.

"At last, some peace and quiet."

Olivia glared at him, trying to demand that he remove the gag, but her words were muffled. Instead, she pointed down to the ocean. Eventually, he removed the gag. "I can't tell you where to go if I can't speak!" she shouted. "Now, you should be bearing a little left up here. Get down low, we'll be coming up on it soon."

Sure enough, in a few minutes, she recognized the large, low-hanging cloud that obscured the island from the rest of the world. They landed on one of the golden beaches and moved quickly into the jungle, looking around. Patrols went by, groups of four women, all in black jumpsuits with silver bracers. As Olivia was about to move past them, she heard the sound of a horn, the familiar sound that had before caused the women to become zombies.

"They're heading to the capitol," she told Lantern. "Be quiet, and follow me."

The two of them slipped through the forest, until they came to the very edge of a beautiful city. The buildings were made of white marble, all in a Greek architecture, around a central building. There, being carried out on his golden throne by four women, was the silverback gorilla, Grodd. And chained to a golden post with glowing chains were the two heroes.

Olivia looked up at the rooftop. It would be perfect to snipe the chains from there. "Lantern, get me up there," she whispered. Silently, a hand came from the ring and lifted her to the roof, where she perched behind a slope near the center. She settled herself in and steadied the bow, aiming for the chains around Wonder Woman. She remembered Superman saying something about keeping magic away from him; on an island full of magic, it would make sense to free the magic-user first.

"My loyal subjects!" Grodd hissed at the brain-washed crowd. "Our success has been completed! Soon, we will overcome the world of man and destroy it. We have also captured two traitors, and will see to it that they are punished as such. No more will we have to fear the superheroes."

"Wrong, ape," Olivia whispered, as she pulled back on her bow, the circuitry inside forming a perfect arrow, with a small tool at the tip. She let fly, watching as it struck true. The chains were nicked, but didn't break. Cursing to herself, Olivia pulled back again as Grodd turned to see her on the rooftop.

"Get her!" he demanded. Olivia watched as two Amazonians hopped up onto the roof, diving at her. She let go of the string and dove away quickly, feeling the sting as one grabbed a lock of her long blonde hair as pulled it out as she moved. Looking down, she saw that Lantern was not there any longer. She hoped that he had gone after whatever it was that might be fueling Grodd, and moved deftly from rooftop to rooftop, trying to keep all attention on herself to give him time to work.

The women tried to pin her between them, but she dropped quickly, whirling around in a flagrant display of color. She noted one woman on the ground, as she threw a net, and quickly jumped out of the way as it entangled the two women who had been chasing her on the rooftops. Again, Olivia pulled back and struck at Wonder Woman's chains, but still nothing. The princess was now struggling against them, however, trying to break them on her own.

Olivia continued her romp from rooftop to rooftop, until she noticed Lantern appearing from the mouth of the palace, pointing his ring at the throne and firing. The back exploded outwards, revealing a panel of sophisticated circuitry. She smiled as she avoided a rain of arrows headed her way (and she smiled at the irony). Unfortunately, her smile turned cold as she watched as Grodd's eyes lit up, as did Superman's; his chains fell off, and he went straight for Lantern.

"Look out!" she cried, as she fired again at the chains. The last chink made it, and Wonder Woman finally broke free. Pulling back again quickly, Olivia formed a warhead, aiming right for the exposed chair. As per her usual, the arrow rang true, until it hit the chair, causing the electronics to explode inside. The women all stopped moving, clutching their heads. As Wonder Woman had finally gotten free of her chains, Olivia watched as Superman grabbed Lantern, spinning him and holding his arms back behind his head painfully. She looked over at the form of Grodd, now motionless, and loosed an arrow at him, hoping to break his concentration. There was no effect. Even at the rooftop, she could hear Lantern's body cracking in protest. "Time to die, Green Lantern," she heard Grodd's voice say from Superman. Again, she fired at Grodd, hoping that a disruption arrow would stop the control, but the body just fell limp to the ground.

Finally, she turned it on Superman, pulling back again. As she did, she felt the rooftop under her shake, and looked down in time to see the stonework moving under her feet. She ducked out of the way quickly, barely avoiding the sandwich of her between two very large slabs of stone. Still, Wonder Woman was trying to pull Superman off of Lantern. He pushed her aside, knocking her back, then threw the badly-bruised man at Olivia. She ducked out of the way, and heard him crash into the wall behind her. Grodd flew up, stopping only to pierce two beams into his old body, killing it. Olivia watched as he flew away, and Wonder Woman dropped to her knees.

"Are you all right?"

She looked up, seeming a little stunned. "Yes, thanks to you." She looked over at Lantern, who had finally gotten to his feet. "I have to attend to my subjects. You have to leave here, before they realize you are here. Go!"

Olivia nodded, and was once again encased in the large green sphere. "Where are we going?" she asked.

"Well, you said your mother was in Atlantis. I think that's a good place to start."

Atlantis. The palace itself took up most of the underwater city, and that was where Batman was prowling, moving through the shadows between columns of coral and stonework. He had not seen Dinah or Aquaman for two days. It was time to change that.

Batman. It was a mantle inherited; Bruce Wayne had become unable to continue his vigil of Gotham City, and now there was a new Batman. If anyone had seen beneath the cowl (which wasn't going to happen in Atlantis), they would see a man much younger than Bruce, just shy of thirty, but with traces of his features. His appearance, however, was dominantly his mother's, middle eastern dark hair and darker skin. In his childhood, he had never known his mother, or his father- his birth, if that was what one wanted to call it, was not exactly 'natural'. There was nothing natural about being nurtured by the green ichor of a Lazarus Pit. Still, this new Batman, this Kamal Wayne, knew the influence that the original Batman had on the populace of Gotham, if not the rest of the world; he made certain to move, act, and sound just like his father. When he had been sane, of course, whatever sanity Batman had once had.

Moving swiftly through the halls, avoiding detection by the guards at the doorways, he paused only when he heard the proximity alert blaring throughout the city. He ducked back into a shadow quickly as a group of guards ran down the hall, towards the throne room (for lack of a better name for it). Following silently, Batman made his way also into the chamber behind them, in time to see the intruder being pinned to the ground. He wore a black bodysuit and scuba gear, long hair dripping wet, held face down.

"Get the fuck off me!" he shouted. That was all the proof of identification he needed, though the missing left arm helped.

"Get him up," Aquaman said, staying seated. Batman stood in the doorway, watching from the shadows. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to find Dinah. I know you've got her here," he said.

Aquaman shook his head. "I'm sorry, but you just missed her," he said, his voice tinged with sarcasm. "Mentioned something about returning to the surface to her loving husband."

"I'm not leaving until I see her," Ollie threatened, still struggling against the guards.

"She is no longer here, Oliver. You're too late. And you are not welcome here. Guards, take him to the exit and make certain he leaves." Batman once again melded into the shadows as the guards left with their still struggling charge. A minute later, another man entered and approached the king.

"She says that she is ready to leave."

"Excellent. Have a submersible readied and tell her that I regret I could not see her off in person. Tell her that we are now even."

The man bowed, and Batman waited as he passed, trailing behind him through the complex series of halls. He ducked into a small alcove as they turned a corner, coming to a door. Two guards stood watch outside it, and one pushed a button just behind him to open the door. It closed behind him, the guards staying stock-still.

Knowing that it would be useless to try and get past the guards without being seen, and not wanting to raise the alarm with violence, Batman went to an external hatch, took a deep breath, and made his way to the nearby window. Inside he could see the man from the throne room, and Dinah, her back to him. It seemed they were in a conversation, as she gestured to him casually. He could not hear what she was saying, but he could read the other's lips. Half a conversation was better than none.

"Yes. You are most welcome. My king says he regrets not being able t se you off in person, but to tell you that you and he are now even. Yes. Your submersible is ready to take you to the surface. This way."

Ducking back into the city quickly, he took a deep breath and gasped for a second or so before making his way back to the hall. He stopped in time to see Dinah, and frowned. Around her neck was a large device, holding her head in place, with a speaker box at her throat. Again, the proximity alarms went off. Her eyes went wide, and she turned around, heading again for the throne room. Looking back over his shoulder, Batman could see a large, green-glowing object, with the symbol of- no….wait…the Green Lantern corps?

If it was a Green Lantern, he could take care of himself, he reasoned to himself. He followed Dinah back, making his way to the upper level of the chamber unseen as she disappeared into an antechamber behind the throne. A few minutes later, the doors opened, and he got a good view of the intruders. One was most obviously Olivia, as Green Arrow, though her cloak was torn and dirty. The other was a man, six foot, and looking not a day older than the images he had managed to scrounge out of the Bat computer of the old Green Lantern, Hal Jordan.

"Looks like we should open a tourist's booth here," Aquaman said sarcastically.

"It's good to see you again, too, Arthur," Lantern replied.

"Where's my mother?"

That caused Aquaman to turn, regarding the girl with disdain. "Who is she?"

"Who do you think she is, with that attitude?" Lantern replied.

"I didn't know Batman had a daughter," he replied.

Before he could let Arrow reply, he spread his arms, opening the cape and flying down, looming menacingly over the throne room. The guards scattered, Arrow pulled her bow and aimed, though her arm shook, just slightly. Lantern had pulled up his hand, and even Aquaman stood up suddenly, pulling out a staff, aiming it.

"He did not have a daughter," he said.

"She's Ollie's daughter," Lantern said.

She put her bow down. "I asked where my mother was."

Again, she was all but ignored. Instead, Aquaman turned to Batman. "I forgot you were here," he said "A mistake I won't make again."

"I asked you a question!" Arrow burst out, taking a step forward.

He gazed at her with cold, unfeeling eyes. "You ought to have respect for your elders, girl," he said carefully. "As for your mother, she has left, and you missed your father by a few minutes. This is not a family reunion hall. Please leave."

"We had better go," Batman said quietly to her.

"Where did she go?" Arrow demanded.

"To see a friend."

There was silence, as they all stood there, staring at each other. Lantern was the first to move, Arrow following reluctantly behind him.

Finally, in the halls, Batman spoke up. "You were only minutes later than your father; I'm surprised you did not see him."

"He came looking for mom, too?"

Batman nodded. "In fact, his arrival and yours prevented her departure."

Without even breaking stride, Arrow turned and began to march back down the hall.

"Olivia, where are you going?" Lantern demanded.

"To find her!" she shouter back. Quickly, Batman pulled out one of his batarangs and threw it. It looped around the young woman four times, as she stopped short. Then, with surprising deftness, she spun the opposite direction, freeing herself from the line and running the rest of the way to the throne room, throwing the doors open.

"Mom?"

Standing there was Dinah, looking surprised to see her daughter there.

"Olivia." Her voice came from the speaker, though her lips did not move.

"You….you can talk," Arrow said, sounding stunned. "That's what you came here for."

Behind them, Lantern and Aquaman were squaring off. "You lied to me, Arthur," Lantern said.

"It was in her best interests," he replied. "She needed a place to stay in solitude for a little while."

"Mom, you can come home now," Arrow said. Her voice had changed, from the steeled alto it had been before to an almost meek hum. "We've been worried about you."

"I can't come home yet," Dinah replied.

"But pop…"

"I don't care about your father."

Batman watched the sudden flood of emotion on the girl's face. There was rage, and confusion, and a deep set pain, before anger finally took over, turning her expression- and voice- to stone.

"Fine," she growled, her jaw held together tightly. "See you later, then." With that, she turned and stormed off. Lantern followed after her with a sigh. They were escorted by guard to the bay where they had first come in. By that time, her stride had slowed, her shoulders had sagged. The ride back was silent, until she finally said, "If pop had just left, he should be out here, right?"

"It was only a few minutes ago," Batman said to her. Though he looked over, he didn't meet her eyes. It was only a moment later that he heard his other companion speak up.

"Found him."

He looked down; on the ocean was a speedboat, heading northeast at breakneck speeds. Once again the emerald energy snaked out, picked up the lone occupant, and brought him up into the jet that had formed after they had broken the surface.

"What the fuck d'you think you're doing?" The words came out almost visible through the fumes of alcohol on his breath. Quickly, he was gagged with a green band and held in the back of the jet. His daughter hovered nearby, silent. It didn't take a detective to see that she was upset and in deep thought.

"Where to now?" Lantern asked.

"Seattle," Arrow said. "We have to get the kryptonite, if Super Grodd is on the loose."

"We should then perhaps return to my estate. It is safe there."

Lantern looked over, then nodded. "One stop flight to Gotham, layover in Seattle."

After quickly grabbing the lead box from its safe, the four of them had made their way to the old, dilapidated Wayne Manor in Gotham. Ollie locked in the library upstairs, Olivia, Hal and Kamal were in the lower level cavern. She was sitting at the lab bench, holding the glowing green rock on front of her.

"So, what did I miss?" Kamal asked.

"Grodd's hold on Themyscira is over," Hal said. "But he's taken over Superman's body now. He flew off; we don't know where he went."

Hal looked over as an Asian woman glided down the steps, bowing slightly to Kamal. "Good afternoon, Master Wayne," she said. "Your father was upset that you did not visit him on Tuesday. He caused quite a scene. The doctors take it as a good sign, that he is growing aware of time."

"Yes, well, I'm afraid my little hiatus wasn't cleared through him first. Minshi, cut a check for whatever damages he caused. And have the Rolls brought around. I'll go to Arkham for the afternoon and see how father is doing." He then turned to his guests. "I trust you'll be comfortable here?"

Hal looked over at Olivia. She was hunched over the bench, working busily. He doubted she even heard a word. "We'll be all right here," he said.

"If you need anything, ask Minshi. She will make certain you are comfortable in my absence." With that, he went upstairs, presumably to change before leaving for Arkham. Hal wandered around the cave for a little bit, until he heard Olivia push the bench she was sitting on back, scraping the metal legs against the stone floor. He turned around to see her holding a very small, off-white object on the tip of her right index finger.

"What's that?" he asked, walking over to her as she carefully put the tiny contraption in her left cheek.

"Something to help," she said.

"What are you planning on doing with it?" Hal asked, feeling slightly uneasy at her vague answer.

She turned and looked him straight in the eye, her face much too solemn for a teenaged girl. "Uncle Hal, do you trust me?"

"Yes," he answered cautiously. "Is there something I should know about?"

"Just remember that, and whatever you do, whatever pop does, don't call the police. Okay?"

He wanted to protest, _needed_ to protest, especially since her mother was gone, her father was incoherent, and there was no one else to watch over her (and god knew she of all people needed a guardian angel at that point), but he could only nod. "Olivia."

"I'll be back soon. Just remember what you said." With that, she went upstairs, throwing her cloak and hood down on the table next to the still untouched rock of kryptonite she was supposed to have been working on. Hal watched as she went, then pulled his ring up, the green glow showing her form heading upstairs, to the locked library where Ollie was. He listened in as well. Whatever was going to happen, it wasn't going to be good; Olivia was troubled, and Ollie was drunk.

He heard her unlock the door, and grabbed for what looked like a bookend, holding it up over his head, waiting. He winced as Olivia opened the door, but watched as Ollie caught himself, lowering the object.

"Pop?" she asked. "We need to talk." Her voice was all but pleading.

"I need to get the hell out of here," he said. "Get outta the way."

Olivia shook her head, closing the door behind her. "I can't let you do that, pop. We really need to talk. Please."

"Damn it, get out of the way, Olivia." He reached over to grab her, but she pushed him back.

"This is how it's going to be?" she asked. "I'm not moving. You're going to have to go through me."

"Damn it!" He reached for her again, grabbing her by the shoulder and throwing her down on the ground. She kicked out, tripping him onto his back, then tried to get to her feet. Ollie was doing the same, and was reaching for the door as well. Again, Olivia pushed him over, but he kept his balance, getting fully to his feet. "Get out of my way!" he shouted, grabbing for the lamp on the table nearby.

"Make me!" Olivia shouted back. Ollie swung. That was all Hal needed to see. He was racing up the steps as he watched Olivia drop, and not move. Getting his balance again, Ollie moved for the door as Hal reached it.

"Get out of the fucking way!"

"No, Ollie!" Hal all but shouted, throwing him back into the room with a large green hand. "Look at Olivia! Look what you've done!"

Ollie sneered, but looked down at her. She was lying on her side, glass covering her face and tangled in her hair. Her green eyes were open and glossed over. The rage on Ollie's face soon turned to concern, then panic. He knelt down and pushed against her neck. "I've got no pulse. She's not breathing!"

Hal gritted his teeth. "We've got to get her to a hospital," he said. Without thinking, he surrounded the three of them in another green bubble, and flew as fast as he could to Gotham Mercy Hospital. Ollie had picked her up in his arms and was trying to shake her awake. Nothing. Hal could feel his own fear beginning to rise. Was she really dead?

Did her father really kill her?

They made it to the hospital only moments later, where Ollie began to rough up the doctors, demanding that they do something. Olivia was taken away to the intensive care unit, and both men were left in the hallway. It was only then that Hal realized he was still in the green and black Green Lantern uniform. Quickly, he ducked into a closet and emerged as Senator Jordan again. Ollie was still standing numbly in the hallway. Hal eased him down into a chair, as he mumbled, then broke down, covering his face with his hand.

"They'll take care of her," Hal said. "We just have to wait. Can I get you something? There's a coffee machine over there." Ollie managed a very weak nod, and Hal went off, looking down the hall. He was concerned with the lack of scrambling doctors or nurses. Either they knew what was wrong with Olivia and whoever was on staff could handle it… or there was nothing they could do for her. They could only wait.

The wait seemed to take forever, before there was finally commotion in the halls. It wasn't what either of them were expecting, however. Swarming through the hospital were suddenly men in black suits, all carrying weapons. Hal again felt himself grit his teeth; idiot, he had come as Green Lantern to a public place. Of course, the MCC would descend on the place.

One of the men came up to him and Ollie, and they both stood up. "Excuse me, gentlemen," he said, flashing them both a badge. "I'm with Homeland Security. I'd like to ask you both a few questions."

Hal barely noted the sudden punch that collapsed the man. Ollie wasn't even pausing, reaching out to the next man, breaking his nose, and tripping the last one. He then went tearing down the hallway, towards the entrance. Whatever he was doing, he was on his own; Senator Jordan would not be able to aid a man who had assaulted an officer, at least not overtly. But he could cover his getaway. He tried to be helpful, tripping the men, pushing them into each other as he tried to 'help' them to their feet. Down the hall, he heard shots, and began to make his way to the exit with the others in the maelstrom.

Once he had gotten to the door, there were more men in suits, ordering people into groups. Finally, a woman in a skirted suit came forward and addressed the somewhat-panicked crowd. "Ladies and gentlemen, please. We are here to assess the situation and any risk there may be to you and your relatives here at the hospital. So, if you'd please just sit tight and cooperate with our investigators, we'll try and get your testimonies processed as quickly as possible. Thank you."

Her eyes swept over the crowd, until they rested on Hal. He straightened himself up, and started to walk towards her. "You seem familiar," she said, her voice measured carefully.

"Senator Jordan," he introduced himself. "And you are?"

"Agent Todd with Homeland Security," she said, shaking his hand. "If you don't mind my asking, Senator, what are you doing here?"

"I am here with a friend of mine," he said as he scanned the crowd. No sign of Ollie. Good. "I seem to have lost him in the confusion, though."

"Well, it is dangerous for you to be here, Senator," Todd said, motioning to another man. "Agent Williams, take the senator here back to Washington. Unless, of course, there is someplace else you need to be?" There was a hint of threat in her voice.

Hal set his jaw. "No place else to be," he said, resisting the urge to look back at the hospital. Olivia was still in there…but if he couldn't be there, then there was always Kamal and his seemingly endless resources. He would phone the eccentric billionaire as soon as he could. He'd also see if he could get him to track down Ollie...wherever he ran off to.

"This way, Senator," Williams said, gesturing him to a helicopter that had landed nearby. Seeing no alternative, Hal followed the man and hoped that everything would work itself out.

The serum had worn off as it was supposed to, but instead of seeing a room full of books, or even a bedroom in Wayne Manor, Olivia was looking up at the cold, white ceiling of a hospital room.

_Shit_.

The doctors next to her were filling out paperwork. There was nothing hooked up to her, though the equipment was everywhere. A nurse to her left let out a rather frightened scream, as Olivia sat up, rubbing her head. Whatever kind of lamp that was, it wasn't easy on the temples. Before she knew what was happening, however, the doctor had dropped his pen, and was insisting that she lie back down, forcing her onto her back again.

"I'm fine!" she told him, as she struggled to get up.

"Please miss, just lie back down and relax, we're going to have to run a few tests," he told her. His voice sounded shaky.

"I'm telling you, I'm perfectly all right. I've got to go to my father."

"Miss, I can't let you do that. A minute ago…you were _dead_."

"I know, I did that to myself, I have to go talk to him." She finally sighed, seeing no other alternative. Reaching back, she punched the doctor right above the nose, then rolled off the bed, unraveling the sheet with her. She spun it once, snapping it over the poor already-terrified nurse's head, then into her chest.

As she did, she heard the door open. As she spun to accost the new intruder, she caught herself; standing there was Kamal, as Batman. "How the hell did you know I'd be here?" she asked.

"Security cameras," he said. "And you're a terrible actor. Next time hit yourself over the head. It'd be more convincing." Olivia shrugged, buttoning up her shirt quickly. "The MCC's here. Your uncle panicked and brought you here as Green Lantern. We've got to go."

Olivia cursed again, then nodded. After being taken to a public place by a hero, it wouldn't really do too much to ruin her reputation any more if she left with one. Once in the hallway, they were stopped by a shout.

"Freeze!"

Turning, the sheet still wrapped in her hands like a whip, Olivia saw three men down the hall, dressed in black suits and sunglasses, pointing guns at them. There was suddenly a black streak moving towards them, knocking their weapons away.

"Get to the roof," Batman told her quietly. Nodding, Olivia ran to the stairwell and began to climb- _literally_ climb. Ignoring the stairs, she pulled herself up and over each banister as quickly as she could go. Behind her, she heard Batman's own footsteps, and some ways behind him, the three men. When she finally burst through on the roof of the building, she stopped short; a very large black helicopter had landed, and one other was circling the area. She ducked out of the way quickly as the search light ran over the area, nearly running into Batman.

"Hold on," he said, as he threw another one of his black contraptions, this one with a line attached to it. Olivia grabbed him around the shoulders and shut her eyes, as they left the rooftop, the air whipping at the both of them until they stopped on another solid object. Finally opening her eyes, she found herself standing on another building across the street. Quickly, they both jumped down to street level, where a black car was waiting. As she jumped in and felt her body press into the seat from acceleration, the car was filled with bright light.

"This is Homeland Security," a voice boomed from the helicopter. "Stop your vehicle at once and surrender."

"I thought these windows were tinted," Olivia said.

"They are."

She held up her middle finger at the sky. "Then can they see this?" Not even a smile. "Fine, be that way. We have to-" Her words were cut off as she was once again throw back, the car moving faster than she thought a car would be able to. A few moments later, and the light was behind them. "We have to find my father. Do you have any bat contraption that can do that?"

"I usually would, but that requires him to have something to trace," Batman replied.

"Eh." She paused for a moment, thinking. As she moved in the seat, trying to peel herself out from the indent she had left, she felt something in her pocket: her cell phone. Quickly, she pulled it out and dialed her father's number. "Come on, come on, answer…."

"Who the hell is this?"

"Pop, it's me."

"Olivia? No. No, it can't be." His voice sounded hollow, almost echoing in the phone.

"Yes, it is. Listen, we really need to talk. Tell me where you are." As she spoke, Batman reached over, hitting the key for speakerphone.

"Look, I don't know who the hell this is, but I want you off this phone. Right now."

"Pop, it's me!"

"No, Olivia is dead."

"No, I'm not." She barely perceived that the car was suddenly changing directions. They were approaching a bridge. Realizing what he had done, Olivia began looking out the window. "Please, just tell me where you are. I'll be there soon."

He didn't have to answer. There, on the side of the bridge, was a man, standing on the wrong side of the causeway. "Stop the car!" she shouted, pressing the button to open the top. Before it had come to a stop, she was jumping out, onto the bridge itself. "Pop!"

He turned around, his face completely pale. He blinked once, and then turned back.

"No, Pop, please!" she begged, her whole body shaking. "Please, come back over here. We really need to talk."

"You were dead," he whispered, barely audible over the traffic.

"I know," she soothed. "But I'm okay now. Please." She took a few steps closer, as he managed to climb over the barrier of the causeway before collapsing. She ran over to him, propping him up on her shoulders as she led him back to the car. The drive back to the manor was eerily quiet, as she realized just how close she had come to losing both her parents.

_Fucking retard._

Once they had gotten back to the Manor, Ollie went to go lie down, understandably exhausted and confused. Minshi had already cleaned up the library, and everything was as it had been, sans the broken lamp.

"You goaded him into a fight," Kamal said, once he had changed again.

"Yeah. It was better than a twelve step program. Besides, it's not like I meant for him to do what he did. If Uncle Hal hadn't taken me out of here, things would have been different." She then looked around; he wasn't there. "Where is Uncle Hal?"

"I cannot say I know. I did not see him at the hospital."

"Great. Well, he's a tough geezer, he can take care of himself," she said. "As for us, we'd better get back to Seattle. Pop'll need someplace comfortable, familiar, especially if he's going to be drying out."

"I understand," Kamal said. "I'll have a plane made ready for the both of you in the morning."

Olivia looked over at the bench she had been working at. Sitting next to it was Hal's locked briefcase. Smiling, she picked it up. "I wonder what's in here," she said to herself, trying to keep the grin off her face.

She could barely hear Kamal's sigh as he took the briefcase and put a small instrument to the lock, popping it open. Inside was a large, brown folder that was tied closed. Opening it, she began to read through as Kamal took photos of the documents. She came to a set of documents that had been clipped together, about the Meta-human that she had helped apprehend in Seattle. It mentioned her as the archer, and she couldn't keep the smile off her face. As well was the report of the remarks she had posted from Kamal's jet a couple days ago.

"All right," he said with a smile. "Washington's sitting up and taking notice. This is great news!"

"It is dangerous to attract so much attention," Kamal said.

Olivia dismissed his concern with a quick wave of her hand. "I live in Seattle. There are more wireless coffee shops than streets in Seattle, and I know someone who works at a little computer shop. He installed an IP mask in my laptop. No way to trace the posts."

"Those are the people that the government hires to find people like you," he said.

Just then, Minshi entered. "Master Wayne, there is a rather interesting news feed that you should see," she said, turning on the TV. It was, of course, tuned to LNN, and the bottom of the feed listed the location as Washington, DC. It was focused on the sky, where at least a dozen attack choppers had been deployed, surrounding two figures. One was the commandeered form of Superman, and the other made Olivia catch her breath.

The other was Green Lantern.

The helicopter that Agent Williams had led him to was an unmarked black helicopter. Though his specialty was with planes, Hal knew from his time in the military that this type of attack chopper was not standard issue to a civilian group such as Homeland Security. There were two pilots, Agent Williams, and himself. The journey back to Washington, DC was all but silent. That is, until they received a frantic radio communiqué.

"All available units, we have an emergency over the Washington monument. Again, all available units, we have an emergency over the monument. Positive Identification of-"

At this point, Hal didn't need to hear the rest of the message. Through the helicopter's cockpit as it reoriented itself quickly, he could see a man floating in mid air, tearing down parts of the monument. Grodd.

"Hold on, Senator," Williams said. "I'd strap in if I were you." Suddenly, the side of the helicopter opened, the air whipping through as a large cannon swung into place. Williams grabbed the two large handles for the cannon.

"I wouldn't suggest that, Agent," Hal said urgently. "You know what you're up against." More than anything, he felt helpless. Surrounded by these obviously-MCC agents, he could do nothing to help but sit quietly and hope that he could slip away after they landed.

"Don't worry, Senator," Williams said. "We know what we're doing."

Hal gripped the seat tightly as he watched the cannon swing around. From the barrel came a bolt of pure energy, a weapon that he knew for a _fact_ that no civilian group should have access to. The blast did little more than get Grodd's attention, though he stopped his assault on the monument. He turned and glared at the helicopter, his heat beams arcing across the nose of the chopper. It was reflected off by the special paint. Seeing this, Grodd flew forward, up to the helicopter. It wasn't a few moments later that the gun was no longer attached to the side of the chopper, and Williams was on the floor of the chopped, bleeding profusely from his head.

Quickly, Grodd swung around, punching through the cockpit canopy, instantly killing the left pilot. The co-pilot began to panic, swinging the helicopter side to side in a vain effort to disengage the overcome Kryptonian. Hal jumped up out of his seat and pushed the dead pilot out of the way. His old military instincts kicked in, as he started to force the helicopter to the ground. Unfortunately, it was all but impossible, what with Grodd now _bending_ the blades. He looked over at the copilot. He was completely white, shaking uncontrollably.

Hal grabbed the man and forced him out of the cockpit, pulling him out of the crashing copter. With a quick blow to the back of the head, he was unconscious, and Hal was now able to will his ring to his finger. He used the ring to slow their descent, enough for him to land and drop the man. Knowing that he was outmatched, he grabbed his cell phone, dialing Kamal quickly. He didn't even bother to wait for him to say his greeting, before he said, "Get to DC, now!" and hung up. His suit had now changed back into the green and black of the Green Lantern Corps, and he was racing back up into the sky. Grodd was now turning his attention back to the helicopter, rushing at one of the two dozen attack choppers that were now surrounding him. Unfortunately, they did not paint Hal as a friendly; some of them were maneuvering to target him as well.

Grodd turned now to regard him, grinning. It was a very odd feeling, looking into the silvered eyes. As he stared him down, the helicopters had launched missiles. Hal quickly used his ring to put up a sphere of emerald energy to protect him, as he moved towards one of the choppers. His energy grabbed it by the tail, forcing it slowly to the ground. It was out of the fight, but the pilots inside were safe. The same could not be said of the others. They were being torn apart by heat beams.

Flying back up, Hal extended his arm, forcing an energy shield to form around Grodd. He glared angrily at him, and punched through the sphere, shattering it into sparks of green energy. With each one that Hal put up, he would destroy.

"I do not have time for these games, Green Lantern," he said. The silver eyes glowed, and Hal felt something in his head, a painful migraine that threatened to break his concentration. As soon as he shifted his focus from Grodd to his pounding head, the overcome alien sped off to the north. He knew he couldn't let Grodd go off, so he summoned his willpower again, blasting him with a burst of pure energy.

It did the trick. He began to fly off towards Gotham, hoping to lure him as well, shortening the journey Kamal would have to make. Instead of trying to contain Grodd with his ring, Hal concentrated on protecting himself, allowing Grodd to strike over and over again. He finally had to stop and hold his ground, especially when a swipe got through his protective field. The strike felt like a ton of bricks, knocking the wind out of him. Fortunately, his ring protected him, giving him a second wind. And a third, and a fourth, as Grodd continued to pummel him. All through the beating, Hal concentrated on two things: keeping Grodd's attention on him, and staying up and conscious to assist in keeping his attention. He could only hope that Kamal would be able to reach him before he fell. Already, he was beginning to feel exhaustion.

Suddenly, Hal noted a very small, quick-moving object whiz past Grodd. Looking down, he saw the Batmobile turning quickly to follow him, and a small, green-clad figure leaning out the top hatch. His relief that Olivia was healthy would have to wait. He pointed his shaking fist down at the vehicle, lifting it into the air; Kamal and Olivia had no chance of helping if they were on the ground, and he doubted he would be able to get Grodd to go down to them. As Olivia was pulling back on her bow again, Hal noted that Kamal was climbing out onto the hood. The image was blurred as he felt another blow from Grodd.

There was a flash of motion, and a sudden shout from the villain, as Kamal landed on his back, having jumped from the Batmobile's hood. Grodd stopped, hovering there, seemingly wilting. It was then that Hal noticed the large chunk of kryptonite that he held.

A moment later, an arrow struck him in the chest, sending neural sparks through him. Suddenly, he heard Clark's voice, and the silver disappeared from his eyes. Hal eased the Batmobile down, guiding Clark down to the ground, as well. Kamal tossed the kryptonite to Olivia.

"What happened?" he asked, looking around. "Where's Diana?"

"Long story," Hal said. His voice was cold; he was trying to control his anger. He had fought Superman once, fought him in his own impregnable fortress. He hadn't been able to kill him there- it was not his place to be an executioner. Now, the memories he had tried to suppress were returning. It was an unpleasant sensation. "Grodd took control of your body. You destroyed parts of Washington."

"I did?"

"Yeah."

"I…" He never finished his sentence. He looked at the three of them, and without a word, flew off to the south.

"That was weird," Olivia said.

Hal looked over. "Yes, it was."

"Come on. We should be getting back to Gotham."

The journey back took very little time, and soon they were all seated in one of the parlors at the Manor. Hal learned that Olivia had put herself into a state of suspended animation to get a point across; she had thought it would be the only way to get through to her father, Hal thought it was something stupid, though it definitely fit the description of a typical Queen family scheme.

"If you don't mind, Kamal, I'm going to need to get back to DC," Hal said. "I have to explain that I avoided death thanks to Green Lantern. Hopefully it'll swing some of the senators towards a favorable opinion of the Meta-human and hero populace."

"My idea all along," Olivia said. Hal glared at her. Definitely the same Olivia.

"I will have a plane made ready for you in the morning."

"And us?"

Kamal nodded to the girl.

Hal frowned. "You're going back to Seattle? Why not stay here, or in Washington?"

Olivia rolled her eyes. "I don't think I could deal with living in Washington Land-of-the-Living-Corpses DC. And while Gotham is….well…dark and all, I thought Pop would need someplace familiar to stay while he…you know." She shook her head. "Anyway, he's still got the shop there, and I figure it'll get his mind off of _other things_ if he's working it. Besides, it hasn't been making a profit for a while now, and I can only afford to sustain it for so long before I even go broke."

"So, you've been supporting his habit?"

Olivia glared. "Bad choice of words, Uncle Hal. But yeah, I got my hands on some money, and a few friends of mine who were stock brokers knew where to invest it and when, and a few years later I have a nice, comfy bed with which to help." She got up from the chair. "I'm gonna go check on Pop, then turn in for the night. See everyone in the morning."

"Sounds like a good idea to me," Hal said, getting up as well.

The next morning, Hal found himself in the pilot's seat of a small Cessna, making his way back to DC. He made his way to his office, drafting up a very hastily-prepared speech for presentation to the senate. Though it was only Sunday, he wanted to be ready; by then, word that he had survived the attack on DC would have spread throughout the senate, and he was going to be ready with a few choice words to defend the heroes and start his bid of fair treatment. Besides, he figured it was time, no thanks to Olivia forcing his hand with her sudden crusade of righteousness. If he didn't get at least something resembling a bill into the senate, this black ops branch of Homeland Security was going to be knocking down the door with guns, and he really didn't want to think of the damage that the Queens would do to the agents.

Not even an hour after he had gotten to his office for some weekend hours did he get a knock on the door. "Come in," he said.

Entering, looking exactly as he remembered, was Agent Todd. "Senator, I was surprised to hear you had come in today. I was even more surprised to hear you had survived a helicopter crash."

"Yes well, I wouldn't have, if it wasn't for Green Lantern."

"That other Meta-human that was in the sky yesterday night?" she asked, walking over to him with all the grace of a tiger stalking prey. "Do you have anyone that can back this claim up?"

"Yes, actually. There was a copilot that survived the encounter, as well."

"And how exactly did you get from DC to Gotham so quickly?" she pressed.

"It was Green Lantern."

"Did you talk to him?"

"No," Hal replied. "He took me back to Gotham and said 'You'll be safe here', and left. That was it."

Todd went over to the window, then turned to him. "I was meaning to ask you, Senator, why exactly were you at Gotham Mercy Hospital yesterday?"

"I was actually speaking with Kamal Wayne earlier, looking for campaign contributions. He is a rather wealthy and influential man, after all."

"Yes, I know all about Kamal Wayne," Todd said dismissively, "but you didn't answer the question of why you were at the hospital."

"A friend of mine was there, his daughter had an accident. She was later released, though."

Todd only nodded. "I simply find it odd that Green Lantern was sighted in both locations."

Hal shook his head. "I think you're taking this in the wrong direction, Agent Todd. Green Lantern saved my life. Perhaps he knew that my life was in danger, and he was following me. First in Gotham, then from Gotham to DC. It would make sense."

Todd gave him an amused look. "A senator in the protection of a criminal? Interesting thought."

Hal bristled, but said nothing. "If there's nothing else, Agent, I do have some work I need to get caught up on."

"Of course, of course," she said, though her voice sounded distant. "I'm sorry to have disturbed you."

"If you need my assistance, you know where to find me."

"Yes, I do." With that veiled threat, she turned and left the office. Hal slumped down in his chair. He hit the intercom button, then paused; Claudia had been in the antechamber. Todd must have forced her way past, or else slipped in while Claudia was otherwise out. "Claudia?"

"Yes, senator?"

Hal kept his voice quiet. "Do me a favor. See if you can get me any data on an Agent Todd with Homeland Security."

"Ye, sir."

Quickly, Hal picked up his phone, dialing the Wayne Mansion in Gotham. He recognized the voice of Minshi when she answered. "Hello, Minshi, this is Senator Jordan. I need to speak with Mr. Wayne, if he has a moment."

"Hold, please," she said. Hal waited, looking out at the mall from his office window. A minute later, he heard the familiar, slightly-accented voice.

"Hello, Senator."

"Kamal, good to hear from you again. Listen, I just wanted to call and thank you again for your generous contribution to the party," Hal said, trying to sound natural. "It was good to see you again."

"I was thinking the same thing, and I'm only glad I could help. I know that it's never too early to start collecting for the next election."

Hal breathed a sigh of relief. "All right, Kamal. Listen, I have a few things here that I've got to still catch up on before Monday, so I'm going to have to cut this short. Maybe we can get together again some time, work on that golf swing of yours."

"Any time you feel like it."

"Good-bye, Kamal." Hal hung up, sighing to himself. Either he read Kamal's responses correctly, or he hung up on a very confused man. Now, all he had left on his agenda was to get working on his address to the senate for the next day.

Seattle was cool and overcast, just as Olivia remembered it, and just as it was every day. She had taken her father home, and had made certain that he spent at least a few hours in the shop, working. Though it was closed, it was in disarray, and the final finished storefront looked much better. It was good for him to get his mind off of the cravings, and allowed him at least some action to pull him out of his silent depression. He had barely said four words to her the entire trip back, and flight phobia or not, that was just not like him.

The day passed quickly, and finally, her father went to sleep. Olivia stayed in the house for an hour more, trying to clean up without making too much noise; dishes that had been sitting in the sink for a week were in the dishwasher, the trash had been taken out, as well as nearly four dozen bottles. She had gone through every cabinet, cubby, closet, and room, looking behind anything that could hide something the size of a bottle. She found a half dozen bottles hidden around the house, and made certain to dispose of them, breaking them inside two plastic bags to make certain that Ollie could not simply grab them out of the trash before it was picked up.

After she had finished, she checked upstairs. Indeed, her father was asleep, and she silently grabbed her corduroy coat and house keys, and walked the half-mile to the small coffee house down the street. She had meant what she said to Kamal; Seattle was riddled with them, the same way Gotham was riddled with diners on every corner.

She went inside. Though it was past 11:00, the music inside was still on, the coffee machines were still noisily interrupting, and there were still a few people around. Looking over to the left, at the single pool table that was set up in the building, she noted a few people she had known while volunteering at the Salvation Army a few years ago, before she had stopped going to school. One noticed her as well, and beckoned her over.

"Olivia, we were just about to start a game, you in?"

Olivia shook her head. "Thanks and all, Marcus, but I think I'll just watch."

"C'mon," he said, tossing her a cue that she quickly caught. "You and me, stripes and colors."

Olivia sighed dramatically, trying to hide the smile from her face. "All right, but I still need a coffee. Tom, would you get me a double mocha? There should be some money in my coat pocket." She waited at the end of the table as Marcus set the balls and placed the cue ball down. "You breaking, or should I?"

"Ladies first," he said.

"So, you're breaking?"

That elicited laughter from the others, as Tom returned with her drink. She took a sip, ignoring the burn to her mouth, and aimed for the cue ball. With all her practice aiming at moving targets, it was relatively simple to hit the stationary ones on the table. She rounded the table, finishing up in record time.

"Damn, Olivia, where have you been practicing?"

"Yeah," the third man asked. "I haven't seen you around lately. At all."

Olivia shrugged. "I've been seeing the wonders of the world. Madrid, Portugal, Gotham…"

Their laughter was cut short as Tom looked over at the window. "Narcs," he whispered "Narcs. Narcs."

Olivia looked over in time to see three men and a woman enter the establishment, wearing suits and sunglasses. The woman went up to the front counter, as Olivia reset the balls on the table. "Please, don't tell me you guys have been selling," she said.

"We don't get involved in that," Marcus said. "Our drug of choice is caffeine."

Olivia was getting ready to break when the woman spoke up. "Could I have your attention please," she said. "I am Agent Todd with Homeland Security. As of this moment, this establishment is closed. Please, cooperate fully with our investigation, and we will release you as soon as we can."

Olivia glared hard at the cue ball instead of the woman, though her hands shook. The file came back to mind. Homeland Security. What the hell were they doing there? As she went to break, the balls scattered. She nearly scratched. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Marcus's concerned look; he knew she was nervous.

As she was about to concede play to him, Todd grabbed the cue ball. "Hey, we're using that," Olivia said, covering her nervousness the only way she knew how: with bluster.

"You can have it back in a minute," she said, tossing it back on the table as she stepped forward. Her eyes grated over Olivia like a razor over sandpaper. "What's your name?"

"Olivia."

"Olivia what?" Her voice was not even slightly annoyed. That made her even more nervous.

"Queen," she responded sourly.

"Ah. And, if you don't mind my asking, where were you yesterday?"

"In Gotham."

"Gotham?" she said, blatantly feigning surprise. Olivia glanced at her friends; they were all standing there, silent. No help there. "Now, why would you be in Gotham?"

"On vacation," she said.

"I could think of a few other places that would be better for a vacation. Like, Metropolis for instance. I hear it is rather beautiful there, especially downtown, hmm?"

Olivia set her jaw. "I wouldn't know," she replied. "Only an idiot would go into Metropolis, what with the Metas running around and all."

"Yes," Todd replied. She was still composed, and had a dangerous look in her eye, a look that was growing ever more intense. Coincidentally, the feeling of dread in the pit of Olivia's stomach was growing ever more intense, as well… "There are reports of 'Metas' as you call them here in Seattle, if I recall. A woman who is…" her eyes scanned over Olivia harshly, "about your age…and your height…with blonde hair. And she wields a bow very well."

"Then why aren't you snooping around the Archer's Club?" Olivia said, trying to throw the woman off balance.

"You think I'm not?"

"I see you here."

"I just wanted to tell this unknown hero that being a vigilante is against the law. It would be very unwise for her to continue her career as it is. _Very_ unwise."

"So, why are you telling me this?"

"Tell me, Olivia, have you ever gone to the University of Washington?"

Olivia frowned. "No. I mean, yes, I've physically _gone_ to the campus, but I was never accepted. I dropped all my applications when I stopped going to school."

"Did you ever post on any of their boards?" Todd asked.

Olivia felt the dread turn into full-blown illness. She tried to hide it from her face. "Not that I can remember, no."

"Have you ever been to them?"

"Yeah, of course, when I was thinking about going."

"And what were you looking for?" she asked, leaning forward, just slightly, her voice somewhat softer.

"Oh, it's been at least two years since I went, I have to see if I…can…remember…" she said, stalling, waiting. "Oh yeah. I remember. I was looking up what the other students thought of the food."

"So you were worried about this?"

"Hell yeah, I would have had to eat that stuff the next four years, or else take out another loan for food." The woman was still not growing annoyed. The girl tried to hide her own annoyance.

"So, you would have called yourself a concerned student, perhaps?"

Olivia was at a loss of words for a moment. How the _hell_ did she knew? How? She had been careful, had made certain only to post on the laptop with it's masked IP, had made certain to make her sound like a current student. "No, I wouldn't," she finally said. "I never became a student there. I was just looking."

"I see." There was a dramatic pause, as Todd stared at her, locked eyes with her. Olivia set her jaw, glaring right back, pushing down her fear and allowing anger to take it's place. "I may need to ask you further questions, Olivia Queen."

"I work at my Pop's shop on Main, Sherwood Florist. I'm there from 10 AM to 7 PM, weekdays, 11 AM to 4 PM Saturdays. We're closed Sundays," she replied, sounding like a commercial, chipper voice and all.

"I am familiar with the flower shop," Todd said. She didn't say anything else, only turned, motioned to the men, and went out the door.

"What the hell was that all about?" Marcus asked.

Olivia waited until the agents had disappeared from view of the window before she leaned on the pool table for support, her legs feeling shaky. "I don't know," she said. "But I really hate her. Look, guys, sorry about the trouble. I have to get home, Pop might need me."

"Olivia…"

"I'll see you guys later," she said, grabbing her coat off the chair and running home. All through her mind, she thought back to the conversation, what she should have said, what she shouldn't have said. When she finally made it home, she was surprised at herself; she was relieved that the place seemed undisturbed. Quickly, she slipped inside, and checked on her father again, to make certain he was still asleep. As he was, she merely went into her own room and fell onto the bed, suffering through a long night of restless sleep.

The next morning, most of the senate seemed to be in an agitated state. Some of it was because the senator thought to be dead had strolled in as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened; the rest was from the speech he had given. Hal scanned over the crowd as he spoke, trying to put as much conviction into his voice as he could, without sounding too overblown.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the senate," he began, "I am here today to tell you of a harrowing event you may have seen on the news: the fight between Superman and Green Lantern. You may think this is a repeat of the tragic events that we remember so well. But I am here today to say that Green Lantern saved my life and countless others that day. He selflessly risked his own life to do the right thing. He put humanity first, living up to our highest ethics of valor and heroism.

"I am here today to tell you that instead of containing Meta-humans, we should be integrating them into society and giving them responsibility commensurate with their abilities. We should not blindly condemn them for just being Meta-human, for that is the highest form of bigotry, racism which violates our beloved constitution. They should be treated as every other human being on our planet; with honesty and fairness, the way our forefathers wanted this country, as a shining light for hope and freedom. Please do not turn this into a new era of McCarthyism or Nazi Germany with their internment camps. We must learn our lessons well; we must not treat them as we treated the Japanese Americans during World War II. Just because they are different does not mean they are not Americans. Thank you."

As was expected, he left the floor with a mixed response, though Hal was pleasantly surprised to hear more cheering than he had suspected he would get. The rest of the day's session was pale in comparison and it seemed as though many of the senators did not have their minds in their work, either.

As the day ended, Hal made his way back to his office, where Claudia was. She was sitting at her desk, working efficiently, as usual.

"Hey, I need to get a drink. Want to come along?"

She looked up, her face somewhat annoyed, until she saw the very serious look in his eyes. "Sure," she said. "Let me just grab my coat."

Twenty minutes later, they were both seated at a small table in the Continental, one of the more renowned bars in the capitol. Martini in hand, he started to go over his concerns with his confidant.

"I think something very bad is happening," he said to her. "First Superman's return, and this Agent Todd with Homeland Security, and the file you had left me."

Claudia was about to sip from her own pina colada, then paused. "Oh, yes. I couldn't find any record of an Agent Todd in the records of Homeland Security."

Hal sighed. "Another confusing mystery to add," he muttered to himself. "I think I may need to go on an extended leave. I want to make certain you can cover me here. Todd may come looking for me, or one of her goons from Homeland Security. I'm sure she's watching me right now, and I'm certain she's tapped the office. No, don't look so obvious," he cautioned, as she looked around the bar. "You may have to do some fast thinking and even faster talking while I'm away."

"I can do it, Senator," she said. "Don't worry about me."

Hal smiled. "Thanks. Are you hungry?"

She shook her head. "Not really. I think I better get back. When will you be leaving?"

"I'm not sure. But I'll let you know." Hal stood up and left the bill on the table. "See you tomorrow morning then." With that, they both left, heading their separate ways. Hal's path took him back towards the mall on his way home. People will still about, as it was only early evening, the sun just beginning to set. That made the explosion off to his left all the more intruding.

Looking over, he saw smoke billowing from the roof of one of the buildings along the mall, and ran over as quickly as he could. He was in public; there would be very little that he could do that was not humanly possible. He could, however, still be a conscientious citizen.

Heading over the building, which he finally identified as the Smithsonian Institute, he saw the bedlam that was just outside; people running in all directions, police struggling to contain and control the crowd as firefighters began to make their way inside. Hal went to the front door, guiding the people towards the police and just-arriving ambulances as needed. As he did so, another officer came up to him and was attempting to assist. Fortunately for Hal, his radio was on, and from it, he learned why the museum was hit. Someone had stolen one of the artifacts, a small clock of Aztec origin. Before he could glean any more information, however, he was being led away by another officer, as though he were one of the panicked crowd. Knowing that he would be able to do little more about the issue that night, and especially as Hal Jordan, he went willingly, and finally made his way home with much on his mind.

Monday had been more or less mundane. Olivia spent the entire day in the shop, with her father, though she was still somewhat on edge from the events of the past evening. She didn't mention anything, however; her father was still listless, and she doubted that he would be noticing her somewhat odd behavior. Though, admittedly, not all of her odd behavior was attributable to the events of the past night.

"I think we need to put in an order for more lilacs," she said as she came out from the back room.

"We'll do it tomorrow," Ollie said. "Go clean up the back while I lock up."

Olivia paused a moment, then nodded. She waited in the doorway a moment, then went into the back, rinsing off the shears and wiping down the tables. Once that was completed, she searched the back room for any alcohol that may have been hidden. Nothing.

Finally, she came back out to the front, as her father was shutting off the lights. They made their way out the back, to the van, and proceeded to drive the few blocks back home. It was a silent, uncomfortable ride back, until they got to the house.

As they were walking up to the front door, Ollie put his arm out.

"What is it?"

"There." Olivia looked, and saw that the front door was cracked open, just a little bit. Her face paled. "What?"

"I…met up with some agent last night when I was out," she said, her voice barely a whisper.

"You went out last night?"

"Not the time, Pop," Olivia said, as she moved slowly up to the door. Easing it open, she saw the living room completely trashed, the floor completely covered. The kitchen looked the same way. As she heard Ollie coming it behind her, she ran upstairs, to her room. It had been trashed, as well, all except for her desk, where her laptop lay, undisturbed. She powered it on, and checked the last security checkpoint. It _should_ have been sometime Thursday. The last checkpoint was listed as 2 PM that day.

"They copied my hard drive," she growled to herself.

"Who's 'they'?"

Olivia jumped slightly, as she turned to see her father standing in the doorway. "You really aren't going to like what I've got to say. We've got to get out of here."

"Get your stuff together," Ollie said. "Be ready to leave in fifteen minutes."

"I only need ten," Olivia said, heading down the stairs and into the basement. She saw that it wasn't sacked; either they were interrupted before they could get down there, or they found what they had been looking for and left before heading downstairs. She grabbed her bow and a few spare components for the mechanical guts of it, and then returned to her room for a few changes of clothes.

Fifteen minutes later they were both on the road, and Olivia started to explain what had happened. "After you went to sleep last night, I went over to the coffee shop for a break." She turned to see her father glaring at her. "Hey, I need some downtime, too, after the past week. Are you going to let me finish, or should I pause for chastisement first?" Ollie said nothing, only looked back out the windshield. "I was playing pool when these suits came in and shut the entire place down. Some woman named Todd who said she was with Homeland Security said she was looking into the Meta-human they have reports of, even though I'm _not_."

"Why do you think she was looking for you?"

Olivia winced. "I saw a classified file in Uncle Hal's briefcase. It had mentions of the Meta-human I caught a few days ago for the police, and some witness reports of seeing me."

Ollie looked over again. "Did they see your face?"

"No! Pop, I'm not an idiot."

"What were they doing looking at your laptop?"

"This one you're not gonna like as much." There was silence, waiting. "I, uh…I was trying to help change public opinion. So I've been writing up these arguments and putting them out on the internet. "

There was a long pause. "That was an incredibly stupid thing to do," Ollie said.

"Someone has to get the point across. Heroes need to be given a little more freedom again. I'm tired of having to sit on my hands because I'm not allowed to help people. Besides, they shouldn't be able to squash my freedom of speech."

"We're not dealing with any usual agents." They pulled into a small gas station. "Fill the van up, I've gotta go get some supplies."

"Pop…"

"Just fill the tank," he said, getting out of the van. Olivia hopped out and went around the side, to the pump, and began to fill the tank. She looked around as she waited. Cars were coming up as usual, but she saw no police or black Lincolns coming up the road. The handle popped, and Olivia put the pump back, turning in time to see her father coming back with a bag of goods. "Let's go," he said. "You're driving."

"Where?" she asked, as she got into the driver's seat. Ollie got into the back, dumping out the contents of the bag. There was a small clock, a few bottles of lighter fluid, and some cans of spray paint. "And what are you doing back there?"

"Just drive. North."

"Yes, sir," she muttered, shifting into first gear and pulling out of the gas station. She kept an eye on the road behind them, making certain that they weren't being followed. They weren't.

"Pull off onto the first dirt road," Ollie told her.

"Where at?"

"The first one!"

Olivia turned to look over her shoulder. He had the spray paint sitting on the floor, and was working with the lighter fluid. "Damn, it's good to have you back."

"Just pull over."

Olivia did, turning onto a small dirt road off of Route 65. She stopped after a half mile, and got out near a pay phone. She was ordered to wait in the car, while Ollie made a call.

"Who are you calling?" Olivia asked, frowning.

"Who else?" he answered. "Hal."

Olivia waited in the driver's seat as her father went up to make the call, keeping an eye on the dirt road to make certain no dust clouds were forming from vehicles making their way towards them- or stopping some distance to watch them. It was quite some time before Ollie came back, pulling the spray paint out of the back and tossing a couple cans of it to Olivia. "Get started," he said, and proceeded to spray the side of the van.

It took a couple hours and all the cans of paint, but in the end, the van had a fresh black pattern over the sides. Once that was done, they got back into the van, and began to head North again.

"We should probably stop at a town, hit the ATM. Cash can't be traced," Olivia said.

"But the ATM transaction can, and they'll know where to look for us, what direction we're going. I've been without money before; we can handle it."

"Then how are we going to get lodging?" Olivia pointed out. "Or are we going to rough it?"

She caught her father's gaze in the rearview mirror. The useless rearview mirror, as it only gave her a view of the back doors. "We never took you camping enough as a child," he said. "Give me your cell phone."

Olivia pulled the phone from her pocket, glancing at it. "It doesn't have much charge left," she said, holding it over her shoulder.

"Doesn't matter," Ollie said, taking it from her. She heard a healthy cracking sound, and glanced back. Her phone was in pieces, and her father was pulling out a small chip from the guts. Olivia turned back to the road. Whatever her father was doing, she didn't want to know just then.

A little while later, he climbed into the passenger's seat, putting his new contraption in the glove compartment.

"Is that a bomb!" Olivia exclaimed.

Ollie handed her the phone. "See that red button inside?"

Olivia looked down, then took the phone gingerly and put it in her breast pocket. "Don't touch it. Got it."

"We need someplace to ditch the van, someplace that'll hide the explosion." Olivia saw him turn his head, and glanced over quickly, barely reading the green sign announcing the turn off for Hougen Creek., fourteen kilometers away. That was the first time Olivia realized they had crossed into Canada. She pulled off onto the side road without prompting, until they were bumping off the road, towards the small river. "Stop."

Olivia braked obediently, as her father got out. He took the cell phone from her. "Drive towards the river. Hop out at the last second."

"Please don't blow it up until I'm out," she said, half-jokingly.

"I won't," Ollie said, and Olivia turned away from the somewhat hurt look he gave her. He went to the back, opening the doors and removing what they had hastily thrown in almost a day before. She left the driver's door open, and hit the gas, ignoring the shifter; it didn't matter if she tore up the gears at that point. The river was coming up, and at the last moment, she rolled out of the door, and the van splashed into the river, moving forward until it was submerged and the gears stopped. As she made her way back to where her father waited, she heard the explosion behind her, and the fountain of water suddenly appeared, disappearing just as quickly.

As she made it back up to him, he handed her an axe. "Cut down those trees," he said. "We're making our own shelter. It should last for a month or two, until it gets cold. Then we'll have to move on."

_'Gets cold?'_ Olivia thought to herself as she hefted the axe and went to the nearest tree. It was already October. Still, the mind-numbing work was a chance for her to sort out the events of the past twenty four hours, and as it got dark, they had a small building made of the logs she had cut down.

"Looks good," Ollie said. "Now, get some sleep. I'll keep first watch."

Too exhausted to say anything, she nodded, and crawled inside the structure. After only a few minutes, she was asleep.


	2. Chapter 2 Mind Games

Olivia awoke and crawled out from the small log cabin the next morning, looking up into the morning sun. A thin layer of fog lay at ankle level over the ground. She squinted in the bright sunrise, not used to such brilliant light, nor being up so early.

"Good morning," her father said. He was sitting on the ground near the campfire, stoking it with a charred branch.

She looked over at him. "I thought you were going to watch half the night, then I was. That _was_ the agreement we made, right?"

Ollie shrugged. "It was a good night, clear. It invigorates the senses."

"You won't be getting any sleep until tomorrow night then, you know."

"It isn't a bad day, and besides, it's refreshing to be out doors again."

"Now I know why I never wanted to go camping," Olivia growled.

"Your mother and I probably should have made you go on more camping trips," Ollie thought aloud.

"I never went on any. Unless you include that one time I snuck out and forgot my key, and you found me in the back yard the next morning. Besides, I really dislike fog."

"It'll burn off by the end of the morning. Speaking of morning, I think it's time we got something to eat." Ollie stood up, brushing himself off with his hand.

"Anywhere that we can find some food quick?"

He gave her an odd look. "If you mean a supermarket, we're in the middle of the woods. No."

Olivia rolled her eyes. "I _know_ that," she said. "What I mean is, the food in the supermarkets comes from somewhere. Plants and stuff. Any things that are easy to eat around here, or do we have to go kill something?"

"It's about time you learned how to do some tracking," Ollie said. He looked around, then pointed to a thin deciduous tree nearby. "You see how that tree has no low lying branches?" he asked. Olivia nodded. "You know why?"

Olivia hesitated. "Because…something's been eating it?"

"Right. This," he said, pointing down to the ground, "is a deer trail." Looking down, she thought it looked like any other forest floor she may have seen, but on a closer inspection, she did notice a thin trail of dirt that was cut through the grasses and moss covering the ground. "There should be deer around somewhere."

"But, which way do we go?" she asked, looking down both ways of the trail.

Ollie started walking. _This way_, Olivia thought to herself, holding her bow over her shoulder. She followed him into the forest, away from the small shelter. It was starting to grow warmer, as the sun crept up towards its zenith. The thin layer of fog started to burn off, just as her father had said it would. They walked for a couple hours, until Ollie stopped again, looking down at the ground. He motioned for her to come forward, and pointed down at the ground. "Deer print," he said.

"How do you know?"

He gave her a look that told her she was trying his patience, then pointed backwards. "That is your footprint, right? This is a deer's print. You just have to know." He straightened up. "There should be deer around somewhere, somewhere pretty close, hopefully."

Olivia hoped, too. She was starting to feel quite hungry. A smell traveled across the forest, and she breathed in deeply, hoping to maybe smell something good. It was burning wood. "I smell a fire."

"Yeah. But there's something else. Something…sour." He motioned for her to follow him. "Stay close."

"Trouble?"

"Maybe," was all he said in reply. The two of them walked quietly through the woods. The closer they got to the fire, the more the smell turned sickly- there was something rotten in it. Olivia tried not to breathe it in, but the smell seemed to be permeating the entire forest. Soon, a column of black smoke could be seen.

As they paused a moment to get a better look through the trees, they both heard a sound behind them. Olivia whirled, aiming her bow and pulling the string in one fluid motion. As she did, she saw a man in jeans and a flannel shirt hit the ground, face first. He did not move. Olivia kept her bow pulled and ready as Ollie went over to examine the man. He winced as he pulled up the face, revealing a large gash across his face. Looking up, they could both see a criss-crossing of the tree branches, many of them broken from his fall through them. Olivia figured they were holding him up, until they had passed.

"That looks like a bear's claw," she said nervously. "You think it's linked to the smoke?"

"We won't find out until we get there," Ollie said, dropping the dead man's face back to the ground and moving forward. She followed close behind, holding her bow ready. Whatever was up ahead, she had a pretty good idea she would need to be ready.

After a few more minutes, they came out into a clearing next to the Creek. There was a large pyre in the center of town, burning; the source of the smoke and the acrid smell. There were small wooden dwellings on both sides, and behind it was a twenty foot tall wooden totem. They spread out, looking through the houses for any survivors. Each and every one was in complete disarray; someone had been looking for something.

As Olivia came out of the last house, she once again looked at the totem pole. Walking up to it, she ran her hand over the carved wood, looking for damage or abuse. Though there was nothing seen besides the normal wear of age, there was one particular point that caught her eye. The very top of the pole had a hawk on it, a hawk which had an open beak. The other animal mouths were all closed, even if they showed fangs.

Climbing up with a certainty not often seen, Olivia made her way to the top of the pole. The beak's insides were hollowed out, as though there were a chamber inside. Reaching in, she could feel the chamber itself, but there was nothing in it.

"Get down from there."

Olivia turned her head to look back, and saw a very old man hobbling into the village. His clothing was torn, and the cane he was walking with was splintered. As he took one more step forward, the wood shattered, and he fell flat into the dirt. Ollie was to him by the time Olivia had managed to climb down the pole, and had him over his right shoulder. "Go get some blankets," he ordered, as he brought the old man into one of the wooden structures.

Olivia went through the buildings, looking for any blankets that were still whole, and returned. She put them around the old man, who was quite unconscious. "I think they were looking for something here," Olivia said.

"I thought the same thing. Whatever it was, the old man might know."

Olivia leaned close to him. "Hey, old man," she said quietly. "Wake up. What the hell happened here?"

It was early morning in Washington, DC. The waiter came over with a large plate of pancakes and a smaller plate of bacon, and set them down in front of Hal. He nodded his thanks, then went back to the newspaper he had in his hands. He was reading an article on the theft that had occurred at the Smithsonian, of an ancient Egyptian timepiece. The article quoted witnesses as saying they saw a woman with raven black hair, a black body suit, and a red cape suddenly appear over the museum.

"Excuse me, is this seat taken?"

Hal looked up over his newspaper, slightly annoyed, and saw no one there. As he moved the paper out of the way, he then saw a shock of white hair and a blue forehead just above the table's edge. "No, have a seat," he growled. The Guardian hopped up onto the chair. "I hope no one else is seeing you like this," Hal said.

"Oh, they most certainly are not," he said. "The council has sent me here to speak with you, Hal Jordan."

Hal tried hard not to grind his teeth. He had been wondering if the little blue bastards would find out about his actions. Looks like they wanted to play the 'omnipotent and always aware' card. "About what?"

"There has been a great draw of emerald energy coming from here," he said. "I feel it presence right now. Coming from you, in fact."

"What are you talking about?" Hal asked, trying to bluff him. He should have known better than to try; too much time in the senate gave him some bad habits, it seemed.

"You had given us your ring back, but somehow, there seems to be a Green Lantern running around Earth, even though Earth has specifically requested that we stay out of her affairs. The Green Lantern for this sector has reported that he has not been back here, either."

"And who would the Green Lantern for this sector be?"

"That is Corp business." His voice was suddenly cold. "When last we knew, you had retired from the Corp. So, where is this energy coming from?"

Hal sighed. "Yeah, I returned the ring. But, just before I did…I sort of made a copy. Just in case."

"In case of what?" the Guardian demanded. "The power rings belong to the Corp, not to you. It is not your place to make such decisions."

"Earth needs its heroes right now."

"That is against your people's laws, is it not?" he asked. "The Corp does not countermand any planet's laws. You know that, Jordan. You also know that you are no longer a member of the Corp. You will stop masquerading as one immediately."

Hal winced. "Fine," he said. "What would it take to get me reinstated as a Green Lantern?"

"You would need to come to Oa, where we would convene the council. And then there would be a vote. If the vote is favorable, you would then be assigned a sector."

"And what are the chances of getting assigned to Sector 2814?"

"Very slim."

Just as he thought. "Look, I'm not going anywhere, especially when people need my help. The others may have turned their backs, but I'm not going to. I have a duty."

"Your duty was fulfilled when you resigned from the Corp. You will stop using the ring and end your masquerading as a Green Lantern."

"You could have said that from Oa," Hal said. "You could have taken the ring. But you're here; which means, you want to deal."

"It means that we wanted someone to deliver our message personally, Jordan," he replied. "If you disobey this last order, we will take the ring from you by force, if necessary." With that, he hopped down off the chair, took a few steps forward, and vanished.

_Fat chance of that happening_, Hal thought, as he looked at his untouched breakfast. After that, he really didn't have very much of an appetite. Looking at his watch, Hal noted that it was nearly time for him to head over to the Capitol Building, anyway. Leaving a tip on the table (the bill would go on his tab), Hal got up, folded the paper under his left arm, and left the restaurant. Outside, it was a chilly morning, even for October; he could see his breath in front of him, and the grass of the mall was white-tipped, even from the distance Hal was at from it. Regardless of (or perhaps in spite of) the cold, Hal walked over to the Capitol, only a couple blocks away. Very few people were around, and those that were, were more concerned with keeping warm than watching the man walk down the street.

Finally, Hal was climbing the steps to the Capitol Building, where a blast of warm air was welcome against his cold cheeks. There were other senators milling around, some being harassed by the lobbyists, some in small groups as they spoke to one another. He weaved through the groups, purposely avoiding the lobbyists who would have been gunning right for him (mostly those who were for stronger laws against Meta-Humans), and made his way to his seat, only three rows back from the floor. The other seats were quickly filling, as well, as the session was about to begin.

The hours passed slowly, as Hal sat through the usual tedium of the senate building. The most important issue that was heard that morning was an increase of funding for Nebraska state highways, complete with an hour-long speech by the senator who managed to take droning to a new level. Thankfully, one O'clock came around, and Hal was quick to get back into the lobby. As he stood outside, trying to make his way to the doorway, he noted three men- obviously lobbyists, and obviously agitated- heading towards him. They were going to reach him before he got to the door. As he resigned himself to having to spend a significant amount of time trying to fight with the lobbyists, he heard a thickly accented voice behind him.

"I say, Senator Jordan!"

Hal managed to barely hide the grimace on his face as he turned. Standing behind him was another man, slightly older than himself, with gray hair, a chiseled face, in a suit not unusual to see in the senate chambers- it was the high cowboy boots that made him seem out of place. "Senator, I'm...I'm Sam Wilcox, from Texas, how are you, Senator?"

"Fine," he said curtly.

"Good, good to hear. Listen, I have heard in the chambers a.. a few rumors, if you will. They say that you, Senator, are working on some sort of bill, what was it?"

"The Meta-human Freedom Act," Hal said, though he had a feeling that Wilcox already knew that.

"Yes, yes, the...the what-you-said. Speaking of it, I was thinking that you, you and I should have lunch, discuss this bill. After all, I _do_ have a lot of important votes in my pocket after all. Well, we should go over to the Yellow Rose, a spittin' image of Texas, it is."

"Well, I need to get back to my office first," Hal said.

"I understand, I understand, of course. Look, I'll meet you there in an hour, Senator." He patted Hal's shoulder heavily- no doubt trying to intimidate him by a show of strength, a show that Hal would have laughed at in his younger days- and headed off. Looking up, Hal noted that he seemed to be ignored again, and he made his way quickly to his office. Claudia, as usual, was sitting at her desk, typing away. She glanced up as he entered, then paused her work.

"Good afternoon, Senator."

"Good afternoon, Claudia," Hal said, no longer masking the weariness in his voice. "I have a meeting with Senator Wilcox this afternoon. For lunch. What do you know about the Yellow Rose?"

Claudia's eyes went wide a little bit, and she shook her head. "My suggestion? Get some antacid tablets ahead of time. It's... well, it's spicy," she told him.

"Great. Any important calls?"

She shook her head. "Nothing that can't wait until this afternoon," she told him.

"Good. Could you have the car brought around, please?"

"Of course, senator."

Forty five minutes later, Hal found himself looking up at the sign for the Yellow Rose. It was made of wood, shaped like the state of Texas, with a large yellow rose blooming in the center, the name of the restaurant written around it. Even from outside, Hal could smell the spices. As he walked in, he felt himself walking through a door from Washington to old time Texas. The floor was made of wooden planks, which in itself wasn't unusual; it was the dirt and sand that was thrown on the floor for effect that was odd. Around were wooden booths and tables, and to the right was a large bar, designed to look like an old west saloon bar, complete with trough. _Looks like the Lone Star vomited and this place grew there_, Hal thought sourly. Behind the wooden reservation podium was a young girl, not a day over 18, in a yellow shirt and a red and yellow bandana holding her hair back.

"Can I help you?"

"I-" As Hal was about to explain the situation, he heard Wilcox cry his name over the din of bad country music. "I'm meeting someone," he said, walking over to the table. The table seemed to be scorched, and he could see why. Sitting in the middle of the table was a bowl of tortilla chips, some yellow, some green, and a bowl of salsa that was _smoking_, not because it had been mic'ed for too long, but because the spices in it were so acidic against the tomatoes. He sat down across from Wilcox.

"Good to see you, Senator. Welcome to my favorite restaurant here in Washington, yes sir." Hal nodded, as a waitress came over, putting down a margarita in front of him. "I took the liberty of ordering you a drink," Wilcox said. "You _are_ from California."

"Thank you," Hal said. "You wanted to talk about the bill."

"Yes, yes. Now, I was listening to the rumors that are flying around, you know, about that. Now, as I see it, you bein' from California and all, and the issues that came up from them there folks in San Francisco and all, it might be seen that someone like you's just tryin' to cause a stir. It won't have the punch it needs to get passed, you see. But, if'n it comes from me and my associates, well then." He leaned back, as though the implication was obvious. The only thing obvious about him was his close-minded bigotry and intolerance. Unfortunately, Wilcox had already been elected to the senate seven times; not only was he a deciding factor, being from one of the most powerful states in the House of Reps, but it seemed he either had an excellent spin doctor, or personified the beliefs of an entire demographic. Idly, Hal wondered if he had any connections with the KKK, while he was discriminating specific populations.

"We are violating the constitution by having these laws in place," Hal pointed out. "I don't think you need me to quote the passages directly, Senator Wilcox."

"Of course not, of course not," he said, with a wave of his hand.

"It is up to us, the elected representatives of the people, to protect them. I know that more than one Meta-human was at some point a citizen of California, and I am certain that there were some who called Texas home, as well."

Wilcox smiled. "Couldn't blame 'em, not a bit. Unfortunately, Senator, I think that the wordin' on the bill may be a little too, well, lenient."

"We can't keep throwing every person who demonstrates unusual abilities into Long Gate," Hal pointed out, trying to keep his temper in check. He already knew that his arguments would fall on deaf ears; he had dealt with Wilcox before, the man was stubborn as a mountain, with an ego the size of one (not that he could be one to talk).

"No, no, I agree, I agree Senator. But, eh, I think that just letting' them run free isn't much of a better plan." He leaned in close. "You know what I think?" Hal felt his gut tighten. "You remember that old alien landing at Area 52 in the 1940's?" Hal was about to correct him, but held himself in check. _Deaf ears, remember? Don't waste your breathe_. "Well, when those aliens came down, they did something to our women. Ever since then, they been givin' birth to these… these abominations, is what I call 'em."

"That's a bit harsh, don't you think?" Hal said, unable to hold his words any longer. His control was barely able to restrain his temper at that point.

"Well, that's not what they're called," Wilcox backtracked. "But it's a coincidence, I say, and we have to keep an eye out." He then went on a rambling statement about oil, cattle, and a boy, the gist of which escaped Hal completely. He just nodded; that seemed to satisfy the Texan. "Now, let me get down to the point." _Thank God._ "If we're goin' to be givin' these peoples there rights back, we need someone to keep an eye on them."

"I see no problem in some kind of governmental ID system."

Wilcox shook his head. "That's not what I mean," he said.

"Right now, our police forces are spread thin, under equipped, and outclassed. If we don't do something, the entire US will become like Metropolis."

"Now, see there is my point I'm makin', son," Wilcox said. "We have no one who can stop any oh these abominations if'n one decided to go off the deep end." Again, there was another allusion that had to do with cattle. Hal made a mental note to suggest that a new law be put in; all Texans would need to take English as a second language, so they could communicate with those from the other 49 states. "What we need, now, is cooperation on this bill oh yers. You working' on the freedoms is all right and good and noble; but I'm about keeping' the people protected in case Gotham happens again."

"So you are suggesting a coalition on the bill?" Hal asked.

"I wouldn't call it that, so much as splittin' it two ways. I'll make certain that these abominations are kept in their right place."

Hal could not believe this bag of hot air was even the same species, let alone in the same political party. "Very well," he said. "We'll work on separate parts of the bill."

Wilcox smiled. "I never did think you weren't sharp, Senator, not a minute," he said, as the waitress came over to take their order.

Now, for the _interesting_ part of the meeting….

A few hours had passed, and Olivia found that staring at the pattern of the wood on the inside of the building was the most engrossing thing to be done. In plainer terms, she was bored out of her skull. Her father was sitting near the window, looking out every once in a while. She heard a slight moan, and she turned to see the old man stirring, opening his dark eyes. Ollie moved over next to him, Olivia standing at the foot of the bed. "Good morning, old man," she said.

He focused on her a moment. "You are here," he said.

"Yeah. Look, someone tore up this town pretty bad. They were looking for something."

"What were you doing at the top of the totem?" he asked, ignoring her implied question.

"Looking for whatever might have been in that little cavity in the bird's mouth," she replied.

The old man sighed, looking dejected. "Then it is gone. I have come too late. But, you are here." His eyes went from Olivia, to Ollie. "Yes, the spirits must have sent you. It is up to you to get back the talisman."

"Talisman?" Ollie asked.

"It is a spirit talisman. This village was built to guard it, to keep it safe, but it has been stolen. It gives the wearer the ability to call upon the spirits of the wild and to use their powers himself."

"Well, that would explain the bear attack we saw on the way in. Look, did you see anyone leaving?"

"No one," the man said, shaking his head weakly.

Olivia started to go over the information in her head. She had been on the totem when he had arrived, though she assumed that he had moved in a straight line into the village, which meant that he had come in from the West; the man who had been killed was to the South. At least his story fit. "Well, I think we know where to start looking for this thief," she said.

"Hurry, please," the man said. "The talisman must be returned. The spirits are depending on you."

Ollie nodded, and motioned for Olivia to follow him as they left him in the building. It was mid-day by then, and the sun was just starting it's descent down to the horizon. She may not have been a rural girl, but Olivia had learned early on the advantage of being able to estimate time based on the sun. "You had an idea?" he asked.

"Yeah. The guy who was killed was to the South, which meant the guy who stole the talisman must have gone that way, and come across that poor guy in the escape," she reasoned aloud. "Either she's running just to get away, or she's heading back to the states with a new toy."

"So, we start by heading south. We'll split up."

Olivia was about to protest, but she thought better of it; her father never liked to be told he was handicapped. _Ever_. Instead, she nodded. "We'll meet back here tomorrow morning," she said. He nodded an affirmative, and they disappeared into the forest, in two separate directions.

Olivia managed to come across the body again, then continued south. Unfortunately, she was no expert on traversing woods; she didn't know that she was subconsciously circling trees, changing direction as she did. By the time she realized she should have come across the deer path again, she was completely, utterly lost. For a moment, she felt panic starting to rise up in her throat, threatening to choke her, but she swallowed it down and steeled herself again. She had been lost before; hell, she had been lost in Metropolis before, and the woods only had one super powered creep in 'em, that she knew of. She could get out of it. Even if she couldn't, she figured her awkward movements would be easy enough for her father to track. He'd fine her if she got too lost.

Knowing that the trees themselves were her biggest obstacles in the tracking process, she started to climb one; it was easier for her to find her location above the obstacles than within them. Moving quickly up one of the older trees, she perched herself on a high branch and looked out over the leafy ceiling. To her right she saw a hill with a road cutting through it, and running along the road at breakneck speeds was a jeep, painted completely black without the usual splash of color that denoted some sort of license plate. Figuring it couldn't hurt to at least investigate the strange vehicle (and seeing as it was her only lead so far in the search) she pulled her bow and eyed the distance. Quickly calculating the distance and the pull of her bow, the usual weight of her arrows, the wind, anything else that would affect her shot, she focused on the gas tank of the jeep. Her right arm pulled back on the bow as she arced it upwards, towards the sky, for a nice, easy arc that would send the arrow to it's target; her left hand was holding the back of the bow, most of the pressure in the crevasse between thumb and forefinger, as her fingertips flew over the tiny controls on the grip the way a flutist's would confidently tap over the keys. Energy coalesced, with a small drill bit head; she released the pressure, the gyros and weights inside shifting, causing the tip to spin at high speeds. All this was done within the span of heartbeats, and Olivia watched as the arrow arced upwards, then back down, towards the jeep.

Climbing back down, she started to run towards the road, making certain not to get lost this time. Eventually, she caught up to it. The jeep had been abandoned on the side of the road, the door open, keys still inside, the tone that warned occupants of an open door chiming annoyingly. Olivia was about to run up to it, when her eye went to the quarter panel; her arrow had been snapped off, the head still imbedded inside.

Unfortunately, her movement had already been noted, and suddenly leaping out from the tree line was a woman. Her skin was dark, perhaps of Hispanic origin, and she had very close cropped red hair. She looked to be from the area, with the large flannel overcoat and heavy jeans. "You picked the wrong car to hijack, girl," she said.

"Not looking for a car," Olivia said, as she brought up her bow again. Quickly, she glanced down at the woman's neck; she wore a tiny wooden carving identical to the totem pole that had been in the village. "I'm going to have to take that back to town." Pulling the string quickly, she loosed a net at the woman. It landed around her, and Olivia was about to approach, when she raked across the netting the way a cat with claws would, and was freed. Backing up a step, she brought the bow back up, but not before she earned a swipe to the cheek.

"Now that wasn't very nice," she said, reaching back and firing another net. Again, she broke free, and swiped at Olivia with surprising agility. As the possessed woman came forward again, Olivia ducked out of the way. Again, she pulled back on the bow, sighted her target, then turned away, as she unleashed a brilliant white flash in the woman's face.

When she opened her eyes again, she was nearly on top of her, but Olivia managed to roll out of the way. _Great_, she thought, _she can cut through the net, and she can't be blinded. What the hell am I supposed to do?_ The momentary pause was enough to start up the assault again, and Olivia concentrated on keeping out of the way. Each time, the woman's body seemed to take on a new style when she touched the talisman. It was then that Olivia got a plan.

She purposely maneuvered herself to be facing the woman with the jeep to her back. "C'mon, you really think you can hit me?"

"You are barely a threat, little girl."

"Barely a threat?" Olivia echoed. "I'm only toying with you. Now, hold still." She aimed for the Talisman on her neck, loosing an arrow. Though she hadn't been expecting the thin projectile to actually remove the thing, she had hoped it would work. The woman moved slightly, to avoid the arrow, then touched the talisman again, and charged forward.

At the last moment, Olivia moved out of the way. With that speed, she had hoped that the woman would have crashed into the jeep, knocking herself out; instead, she stopped short, lifting the vehicle up _over_ her head. Quickly, Olivia let loose another specialty arrow, netting the jeep to the woman's hands. That didn't stop her.

Olivia tried to roll out of the way, but the area of a jeep was pretty big. The blow glanced enough to not be deadly, but the bash to her head left Olivia unconscious and bleeding into the pavement.

It wasn't often that Hal was driving his car by himself, but that evening was an exception. He had wanted to clear his mind, and though he couldn't do it behind the joystick of a plane, he could at least do it behind the wheel of a car. The radio was off, and the sounds of the world around him were muted. As he turned the corner, heading down the street towards his home, he heard something fall onto the roof of his car.

A moment later, the horrid sound of stressed metal rang in his ears, as the roof of the car was suddenly gone. Looking up through it, he saw a woman hovering just above the car. Though he had never seen her before, Hal recognized the purple skin and distorted head of a Korugarian. The yellow energy that was holding the roof of his car was also familiar.

Just as quickly as the roof was removed, it came crashing back down onto the hood, destroying the engine. Hal did not bother waiting for the car to stop; he had pushed open the door and was rolling out of the Lincoln before it stopped. Standing up, he turned to face the attacker. She scowled at him, forcing a blast of yellow energy at him. Fortunately, his own ring protected him from most of the damage, but Hal knew that he would have to take the fight someplace private; it wouldn't be long before witnesses started calling authorities, and that would mean more trouble with the MCC. Again, the woman sent a blast of yellow at him, and Hal watched. The moment that the yellow energy enveloped him, he called his own ring to his hand, changing from his suit to his outfit in the span of seconds that it took the yellow to dissipate over him. Nearly doubled over from the pain, though, the entrance of Green Lantern wasn't exactly graceful; he'd get her for that, too.

"You were the one who killed my father, Green Lantern," she said. "Now, I will kill you!"

That was enough for Hal to piece together her identity. He just wondered where, in all his scheming and trouble-making and imprisonments, Sinestro had found the time to have a daughter. It was unimportant, as the woman sent another blast of yellow energy at him. He put up a small shield of green energy, deflecting the blast, then shaped it from a shield to a large tennis racket; he needed to get the fight out of DC, before anyone got hurt. Already, there was a backup from the damaged Lincoln still in the street. However, his attempt to get her out of the city failed, and the attack started to degenerate into a duel between the rings.

It was then that the woman changed her tactics. She grabbed an older woman nearby, holding her hostage. "Surrender, Green Lantern, or she dies."

"I don't think so." He focused his will through his ring, wanting the woman gone from the scene. The ring took his desire and made it reality, and she seemed to glow green for a moment before she disappeared, reappearing on the other side of the street. Turning back to his adversary, Hal held out his hand, calling the yellow ring to his hand.

Her will was strong, and he was certain that her hatred was only making it stronger. Still, Hal Jordan, the greatest of the Green Lanterns, was no stranger to a battle of will. He focused, thinking of nothing more than the ring in his hand. It was only when he felt the ring in his hand that he realized that, though his eyes were open, he was not seeing. The woman slumped down in front of him. He could have left her where she was- without the ring, she was vulnerable again, and he could hear the sirens speeding forward. However, he made certain to knock her out quickly before making his way out of the area. Once in the alley, he looked at the ring he had taken, and put both that one and his green one in his pocket before staggering out of the alley and to his car, then down the street, away from the scene and the police closing in on the area. Quickly, he pulled out his cell phone and dialed the police department.

"Yes, this is Senator Jordan, I'd like to report my car stolen…"

The pain was the first thing that woke her up. Her head was throbbing, her entire body aching. Trying to ignore the jackhammer that was trying to pound a hole through her skull with a lit cigarette, Olivia opened her eyes. At first, everything just seemed to be a blurry brown haze. Eventually, her eyes began to focus, and she saw that she was staring at a wooden ceiling. The wood was not the same wood that had been in the village; Olivia was certain of that, which meant that she had been taken someplace else. She moved her arms slightly, and found that the only restraints put on them was her pain threshold.

"Ah, you're awake," she heard a gruff voice say. "I was beginning to think you weren't going to."

Olivia tilted her chin down to look ahead of her, and saw the rest of the very small cabin. It was only one room, and she was lying in the far corner. In front of her was a small icebox, to the left a sink and stovetop, and cabinets that ran back to the door. To her left was a small couch and a TV with metal rabbit ears on top of it. Standing at the sink was a very large, burly man, wearing the rugged outdoor clothing one would usually see a trapper in, hat and all. She had to admit, her face _was_ feeling cold.

He turned and smiled at her through his full beard, and walked over. She watched as he put one massive hand on her forehead. "Hmm. No fever, but you still are in pretty bad shape. You know, you're lucky I found you on the side of the road like that. It must have been a pretty bad accident. Jeep must have rolled a couple times, at least."

Olivia would have sighed, but breathing deeply hurt. So, he thought she had been the driver. All right, she could work with that. "Well, I didn't expect to see something come running out from the forest like that," she said. "Just startled me, I guess. Thanks."

"No problem. I'm Booker. You are?"

"Dinah," she blurted quickly. The fewer people who knew her real name, the better. It seemed she could trust this man, though why he took her back to his cabin instead of back to a hospital was a good question. The answer, it turned out, was just outside the window; it was snowing. Hard.

"Well, Dinah, good thing I found you just as the storm was starting, or else you'd have been buried within a half hour and frozen solid."

Olivia shuddered somewhat, and tried to sit up. She winced as pain shot through her entire body, and the cigarette-jackhammer started on her head again. "How long have I been here?"

"Overnight," he told her.

Her heart leapt up into her throat. "I have to go," she said, trying to sit up again. Again, the same pain, though Booker had his hand on her shoulder to keep her down on the bed. "My father's out in this, I think he might have gone to that Indian town by the river. He may have been hurt in the crash, too."

"Firstly, you're in no shape to go anywhere, especially in this," he said. "Secondly, there is no Indian village by the river. Never has been."

Olivia frowned up at him. "But, the old man, and the totem pole…"

Booker shook his head, checking her forehead again, this time with the back of his fingers. "That hit to the head may have been worse than I thought," he muttered to himself. "You stay here and get some rest, I'll go out and see if I can find your father. I know this area better than anyone else, snow or not." He stood up and reached up over her head, to pull down a gun from the rack. Seeing the weapon, she felt another lump of panic in her throat.

"Oh, no, I think I lost my bow at the car."

"No, it's under the bed. Interesting piece of technology there, but I couldn't find any arrows, so it's not much more than a prop. Sorry."

"Don't worry about it," Olivia said. "I can do without, especially in this condition, eh?" She winced.

Booker nodded. "There's food in the cupboard, if you get hungry. I'll be back at dusk, if I don't find him." With that, he pulled on a bigger coat overtop the one he already had on, grabbed a flashlight of the kind that had the cranks on the side to keep them powered without batteries, and opened the door. A burst of cold, snow-peppered air flew into the cabin, until he shut the door. Olivia looked at the now-abandoned cabin, and started to work on moving in pain.

After nearly an hour, she had managed to gingerly get to her feet, though her legs were trembling. Between the fight and the loss of blood, and the fact that she had not eaten in two days, she was not surprised to be feeling weak. However, it was no time to be indulging in it; her father was in the woods somewhere alone, the woman with the talisman had run off to God knew where, and she was snowed in with a strange man.

Heading over to the cabinets, Olivia started to root through them. She found them full of nonperishable canned goods, and found salted meats in the icebox. She pulled out two cans of soup and heated them up. The food and the warmth helped her to feel better, though eating too quickly hurt (as did pretty much every other action). Once she had finished, she went to the TV and turned it on.

There were only three channels- hockey, curling, and what a good host can do with cheese. Rolling her eyes, she left the last channel on, mostly because it was a nice droning that broke the silence of the cabin. There was no news on, and while that meant that this Booker would have no way to hear about her and her flight from Seattle, she couldn't find out if the stakes had been raised yet, either.

The hours passed, and it started to get dark. Olivia had fallen asleep once more, but had awoken to find herself still alone. She spent the rest of the time checking her bow for damage. Besides some green paint missing from the back and some mud stains, the weapon seemed to be in perfect working order. She pulled back on the string a few times, making certain that there was no damage to it or to the tips, and found that the energy coalesced obediently. The keys seemed in perfect working order, still, as well.

Finally, the door opened. It was nearly dark when Booker returned, covered in snow. He brushed it off as he hung the overcoat up, and hung his gun back in place. "No luck?"

"I couldn't find any sign of him," he said. "Unfortunately, the snow is getting pretty bad. If it stops, we may be able to go out in the morning. If not…"

"Snowed in?"

"Well, it would make getting to town difficult, I'll tell you that much," he said.

"Hey, I suppose since you live all the way out here, you don't get much in the way of news, huh? Especially from the states."

Booker shook his head. "Never much cared for knowing what's going on south of the border," he said. "Let it stay there. It's none of my business." He looked over at her. "Though this may not be any of my business, I'd like to know what exactly you were doing up on the road over there."

"We were out on a camping trip from the states," she improvised quickly. "We needed some time away from Seattle, it was getting too hectic there, with the shop and all. So, we wanted to come out here and get some peace and quiet."

"You couldn't have found a better place to do that," he said.

"Just what I thought," she said.

"It's getting late, you better get some rest. Use the bed."

Olivia sighed, nodding. It was no use to argue that she wouldn't be able to sleep; besides, she was too weak to fight anyway. If something had happened, she would need her strength to deal with it, and strength was something she had a short supply of. Though she laid down in the darkness, she stared up at the ceiling, thinking. Worrying.

Her father was off in the woods somewhere. Had he run up against the woman with the talisman? Had he returned to the village that Booker insists never existed? Or was he in some other sort of trouble? _Or is he running around like a chicken with his head cut off looking for you after he found your blood by the side of the road and a broken energy bolt in the gas tank?_ she questioned internally, blushing somewhat. Of course, he was all right. He was probably more worried about her safety. Still, her questions did not end there. The agent that had known about her actions- who seemed to know even her family- was she looking for her mother now, as well? How would she be able to warn her, especially since she had no leads as to where she may have gone off to after Atlantis? She had been angry then, angry to hear the words that came from the device on her neck. The anger was purely defensive; she had been more hurt, even afraid. If she wanted nothing to do with her father, then did she want nothing to do with her daughter anymore, either?

_Whatever. I don't need her. She's the one that ran off. I shouldn't feel guilty about it. I've got my father, and I've got my bow, and I know what's right and what's wrong. I know that this Todd bitch is going to get it if she tries to intimidate me again. Okay, she forced my hand; good. Now I don't have to hold back to keep up a damn façade. Whatever she can throw at me, I can take. I can take it. I can take anything._

The last sentence was swirling in her mind all night. She used it to try and ignore the tears that were burning her eyes.

Kamal had found a small table in the very back of the small cybercafe in Gotham. He had a large triple espresso sitting almost empty next to him, between him and the two empty cups that were behind the screen of his laptop. It was good to get out of the manor for something other than prowling and public meetings, and it was a perfect place to grab a couple pots of grade B coffee and do some simple research.

He was still slightly on edge after the night before, after the unexpected visit from his maternal grandfather. That itself was disturbing, since he had broken all ties with his 'rogue' grandson after he had left the League of Assassins to follow in his father's footsteps. What he had told him was even more disturbing- that someone was stealing clocks charged with arcane energy. He had been intent on Kamal stopping the thief or thieves before they managed to complete their quest, and for him to recover the clocks.

Whatever had Ra's Al Ghul concerned was definitely worth looking into, and so Kamal was here, at the café, running through every search engine he could. The laptop was no Bat Computer, but in the computer's current state, it was probably the better choice.

According to his research, an Aztec sun dial had been lifted from the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC as well as an Egyptian sand clock from the Gotham museum. In both cases, witnesses described a woman with black hair suddenly appearing, dressed in a black skintight suit and a red cape. The arrival and departures reeked of arcane magic, and Kamal knew that it would be beyond his own limited understanding. Before getting ready to leave, however, he brought up another screen, a readout from one of the weather satellites from the National Weather Service. Hal had called him the night before, very concerned; he told him that Ollie and Olivia had gone on the run, something about being chased by the MCC. He revealed that Ollie had called him collect international- which meant Canada- and told him to keep an eye on the government. Hal had come to him to see if he could find the two of them, and so Kamal had been looking in his spare time

He still had the screen focused on a small span of river in Canada. Next to the current image was an old screen that showed a tiny thermal output- some sort of explosion, from a vehicle that would roughly have been a truck or van without much fuel to feed the explosion. The distance of the vehicle from Seattle suggested that it might have come from there. The two small thermal images that he had tracked away from the area more than confirmed Hal's report that not only was the young archer in trouble, but her father was taking the threat quite seriously. Whether he was overreacting because of his daughter's involvement, Kamal couldn't be certain. However, they were alive, and seemed to be well, with the speed at which they had been traveling, and so he turned his attentions back to the issue of the arcane clocks and tried not to wonder why Ra's Al Ghul wanted the plot stopped.

Again, he came to the conclusion that he would need to get someone to help him, as he packed up the laptop in the leather bag he had next to him and downed the rest of the cooled coffee. He knew a few people that he could contact for help, as well. John Constantine, certainly. Or Jason Blood, and if he didn't have the answers, Etrigan might have, though it would have been annoying translating the demon's rhymes. There was one other, a former member of the Justice League, who would be able to give him the information he required. Besides, not only was she much better looking and more interesting than the other two, it would be easier to find her.

Getting into his Maserati, Kamal pressed a button on the dash board as he pulled out of the café. "Minshi, I need you to get me a ticket to Zatanna's show tonight, and have the private jet made ready. I need to continue this line of questioning in Las Vegas."

"Very well, Master Wayne," she replied. "Would you like box seats or front row?"

"Get me as close to her as you can," he said. "And make sure that she has a nice bouquet of roses sent to her dressing room, as well."

Seven hours later, he was sitting in the main concert hall of the Mirage, front and center for the show. Pulling in, he had seen the sign displayed proudly out front, in colorful neon, declaring the casino THE HOME OF THE GREAT ZATANNA.

Now, he watched her as she performed on the stage, he knew that her tricks were nowhere near as complex as she made them seem. She had on a top hat that reflected the lights that were shining down on her, a suit jacket and long gloves, fishnet stockings that terminated in shiny boots. Her movements were sweeping and flamboyant, as she moved the 'magic' wand in her hands to make a tiger appear from it, then disappear into it again. The crowd applauded, unawares that they were cheering for a real magician, who needed no such crutch as the wand to perform her magic.

As Zatanna took her last bows and left the stage, Kamal made his way into the back area as the people cheered and demanded an encore. Heading down the hall, he made his way to the door that had ZATANNA written on it, a large gold star above the door. As he passed underneath it, it looked to be a hologram of some sort, shimmering as he moved. Kamal turned the unlocked door knob and opened the door.

Inside, Zatanna was sitting at her dressing table, her hat sitting nearby with her jacket. She noticed him in the mirror as she was using a damp cloth to remove the makeup and glitter from her face. "Can I help you?" she asked. Though she didn't seem to recognize him, she was unplussed; she knew that she could handle any minor intruders she may have had.

He looked over at the small table, and the large bouquet of roses that sat there. "I see you got my gift," he said.

She looked up at him through the mirror. "So, you're Kamal Wayne," she said. "I knew your father."

"Then you know I've taken over the family business," he told her. There was a slight pause, her eyes going a little wide. "I came here to ask you a few questions."

"Then it's probably better if we talk up in my suite. C'mon."

A few minutes later, they were on one of the top floors of the Mirage, in a very opulent penthouse suite. Kamal was sitting on the couch by the large picture window that showed the rest of the Strip, with it's glowing, blinking neon rainbow. "So, you need my help?" she asked.

Kamal nodded. "Someone's been stealing arcane-charged clocks from museums. I have to admit, I'm not exactly the expert when it comes to the arcane, and I thought you might be able to tell me a little more about these clocks." From his suit jacket, he produced the photos of the two clocks and handed them to Zatanna. She looked at them for a moment. Recognition crossed her face.

"The Pentana of Time," she whispered.

"Oh?"

Zatanna put the photos down in the marble coffee table in front of them. "It was just a rumor. In ancient times, five clocks were made, and charged with the arcane energies of their creators. If one man were to bring all five of these clocks together, they would be able to control time itself."

_No wonder Grandfather was interested in stopping this plot_, Kamal thought to himself. "Someone has these two pieces. Which means there are three pieces left."

"Yes. There is a Chinese water clock and a Druidic time stone that I know of, but I am not sure what the fifth piece may be. This…how did you find out about these?"

"When something goes missing from a Gotham building, I tend to sit up and take notice," Kamal said. "We have to find out who is taking these clocks."

"There's no way to trace them. Their arcane energies mean that I cannot scry on them. I would not be able to find where the two stolen pieces are, even if they were not protected by some other sort of spell, which any intelligent thief would do."

Kamal frowned. Why did she bring that up? "I wasn't planning on that, actually. I had a better idea."

"Oh?"

"Let's assume that our thief has knowledge of all five pieces," Kamal said. "We know of two others. They would need to go there to get the pieces."

"Well, how long ago was the last heist?"

"Not long ago," Kamal said.

"And is this your first trip to Vegas?" Zatanna asked with a smile.

"Yes."

"Well, it looks like we can spend one night touring the city, huh? Get ready."

The next morning, Olivia surprised herself by waking up from sleep. She could smell bacon cooking, and opened her eyes to see Booker at the stove, cooking breakfast. She sat up before he noted her movement, and turned around. "Good morning," he said. "The snow let up last night, so I can get you to Beaver Basin this afternoon. Are you hungry?"

"Yeah," Olivia said. "But I'm not going to town until I find my father."

Booker gave her a plate of bacon, with eggs. "You're a stubborn one, you know that?"

Olivia shrugged. "I get it from him," she said, as she started to eat quickly. The sooner they were out there, the sooner she'd be able to find him. "I'll take you to the village first. We might be able to follow his tracks from there."

"I'm telling you, Dinah, there is no village."

Olivia looked up for a moment, then remembered she had given her mother's name as her own. Why? After what had happened, after storming out the way she did, what made her say that? It was a question she forced to the back of her mind, if not out of it entirely; she was more worried about finding her father, first. "I'd still like to see it myself."

Booker shrugged. "Suit yourself. We'll leave when you're ready."

Olivia finished breakfast quickly, then strapped on the snow shoes that Booker gave her- and felt thoroughly awkward. He grabbed his gun, and gave her a very strange look when she grabbed her bow. She then remembered that he thought it a normal bow, in need to ammunition. She wasn't about to inform him of the truth until it was absolutely necessary, only with a demonstration.

Outside, it was still very cold, even without the snow driving down. It was at least two feet deep on the ground, and she felt unsteady as she walked more or less on top of it with the snowshoes. Booker took the lead, though she was the one who was navigating.

Nearly three hours later, she came up on the spot where the village had been. Where the buildings and the totem pole had been before, now there was nothing but a blanket of undisturbed snow, save for some animal prints. She searched the entire area, unable to come to terms with the truth. Searching almost a foot down, she could find no trace of the village, or of her father.

"You see?" Booker said. "Nothing."

Olivia turned, looking into the woods again. "He went down this way," she said, and began making her way back into the woods. Through the trees she led him for hours, searching for any clue as to where Ollie had gone. She wasn't an outdoorsman; she had no clue what she was looking for. Her eyes kept scanning, though, and as the hours melted away, her concern began to build.

Eventually, they came upon the road, and the jeep. It was overturned now, beaten and battered and covered as well in snow. Even if she had wanted to see if he had come across the wreckage, the snow would have hidden any clue she could have recognized.

"We better start heading back," Booker told her. "It's getting dark soon."

"I can't turn back now!" she said. She looked down to the south, down the hill. The woods were silent, unmoving under the blanket of snow that covered them. Her fingers were starting to hurt as she gripped her bow in a death grip.

"You won't be able to find him in the dark, and there's no point staying out for the night. Especially if you have a choice."

She looked over at Booker, this man who had found her, a complete stranger, probably dying on the road. He had taken her in, made certain she would survive, even attempted to get her into town and to a hospital. He also was making certain that she would not be lost in the woods alone, and had gone looking for her father- a man he had never met- because of her concern. _Sometimes, people are just good_ she thought to herself. She was glad to see something heartening like that; it let her know that her fight was still worth fighting. And she knew that it was time to stop running. She nodded, and made the two hour trudge back to the cabin, where she warmed herself and got something to eat before settling in to relax before she went to sleep.

Once he had finally gotten home after narrowly dodging the bullet of the attack on the road, Hal checked his messages quickly. There was nothing of note, though he had hoped that there would be; after hearing from Ollie about the tossing of the house and the escape across the border, he had contacted Kamal to get the search started. He knew Ollie, knew that he could get along fine by himself in the wilderness, but he had seen how serious Homeland Security had taken Olivia's internet posting. Disturbing was a word rarely used in their language, only trumped by 'dangerous'. If someone had gone through the house, they were looking for something to swoop down on them with, and even if they were aware of an impending arrest, Hal knew that the MCC would bring enough firepower to stop both father and daughter. He would need to be there, if for nothing else than a distraction while they escaped.

He picked up the phone and dialed Kamal's cell phone. After a couple rings, the younger man answered the phone. In the background, he heard sounds of sirens and car horns and music. "Hello, good to hear from you again, Senator Jordan."

"Hello, Kamal! It sounds like you're having a good time!"

"Yes, I am, actually."

Hal tried to hide his annoyance; his niece was in danger, and he was off having a party? "Have you had any news on our mutual friends?" he asked. On the other line, he heard a woman's voice.

"Is that you, Hal?"

It only took him a moment to recognize the voice, and he bristled. "Hello, Zatanna."

"Kamal tells me the line is secured now," she said. "It's been a long time, Hal. I hear that you're going back to your old self again, huh? Looks like it's a regular JLA reunion."

"Put Kamal back on the phone, I have something important to discuss with him."

"Oh? What, are you throwing Ollie a surprise party?"

Hal wanted to say something to her about the trouble, but he decided against it; he didn't trust her to begin with, and he wasn't about to let her know that his friend was in trouble. "Zatanna."

"Fine. But we'll have to talk again soon."

In another moment, he heard Batman's voice again. "Jordan."

"Any luck with the search?"

"Yes, actually. The national weather service reported a thermal reading a couple days ago." He then gave Hal a set of longitudinal coordinates, which he wrote down quickly. "They looked to be all right, heading northeast from there. They're definitely not heading to any town."

"Ollie wouldn't take her to town if he thought she was in danger," Hal said. "I'll see if I can find them. You…go back to being a playboy."

"Thanks." The line went dead and Hal hung up, and called the ring to his hand. He was tempted to put the yellow power ring away, but something told him to keep a hold of it, and he went out to the backyard. Checking to make certain that no one was looking, he quickly made his way into the air, fully costumed, on his way to Canada.

Kamal put his cell phone back in his pocket as the large double-decker bus passed the Bellagio. He and Zatanna were seated in the upper deck, in the open air of night in Las Vegas. There was an open bottle of champagne, as they sat across form each other, talking about the city and what they had been doing.

"I didn't realize that you were trying to get everyone back together," she said. "Is Ollie gonna come pay me a visit or what? Where Hal was…"

"Ollie is in trouble," Kamal said. "More accurately, his daughter is."

"He had a daughter?" Zatanna said, blinking. "Well, good for him and Dinah." She took another sip of her champagne. As she did, Kamal looked back out, as they passed the Sands.

Sands….

"Stop the bus!" Kamal shouted down to the driver. How could he have forgotten? He had put up a flag alert on Dinah's card, and the last purchase she had made was for a room at the Sands. The driver slowed and pulled over, as he hopped down out of the bus, handing the driver a hundred dollar bill on the way out. Behind him, he could hear Zatanna following, until he entered the casino's grand lobby. Inside, he made his was past the lines- having money allowed him to do that. From the concierge, he learned Dinah's room number- 617.

Alone, he went up in the elevator, smoothing his tuxedo and taking a deep breath. He had no reason to be nervous; she didn't know that he would be coming to see her, and he was no threat to her, not yet. The elevator stopped, and he stepped out into the hallway. Walking down it, he stood in front of the door and knocked.

The door opened, and he saw her, looking even younger than he had remembered in Atlantis, in her old costume, as though she were ready to go out somewhere. Kamal frowned as her eyes went wide. From his right, he felt a pressure on his temples, and a soft word

"Peels." His eyes closed.

…

Kamal laughed. Zatanna managed to get her laughing under control, as the bus pulled up in front of the Mirage after it's circuit on the strip. They both made their way up to her penthouse, and sat down. "Thanks for your help, Zatanna, and for the good time," he said.

"It was my pleasure. Where did you say you were off to?"

"I'll be off to China until I find that water clock," he said. "Then, to Jamaica."

"Oh, a vacation?" she asked, as she began to draw a bath.

"No, I'm looking for someone," he replied. No point in letting her know who; she wasn't going to be any help finding Dinah, anyway. He left himself a mental note to try and find out which hotel in Jamaica she had gone to; he would get it from her credit card records.

"Well, good luck with that. You're welcome to stay, I'm going to get washed up a bit."

Kamal nodded as she closed the door to the bathroom, and he went over to the computer on the table, and began to look up anything he could about the Chinese water clock.

The ground sped by quickly, until Hal was finally over the river that Kamal had specified. From there, he started to search for thermal patterns using the ring. It wasn't long before the thermal pattern coalesced, and he followed it, through the woods to a small wooden structure, very hastily built, then to a clearing by a river. Once there, he found signs of someone having dug around, and followed the trail of footprints to an overturned jeep, then to a small log cabin in the woods.

Creating a large green window, he looked inside the small cabin. Inside were two people, and one was definitely Olivia. Flying down to the door, he knocked, and waited. Inside, he heard commotion, and waited. The door opened, just slightly, and he saw a green eye peer out from the crack before it was thrown open.

"GL, good to see you!" With the door open, Hal got a good look at the other occupant. He was a big, burly man with a beard and had a very impressive gun in his large hands. "You can put it down, Booker. He's a friend."

"He should come in, in that getup he's liable to catch cold."

Hal walked in and let Olivia shut the door. "Where's your father at?" he asked.

Olivia's face fell "I don't know," she said. "You probably aren't going to believe me. Booker doesn't believe me, but I know it was true." With that caveat, she sighed. "Pop and I were looking for deer in the woods when we came across this really bad smell, and there was a town that was burning. This old man showed up and told us that this woman stole a talisman that had the power of the animals or something in it, and that we had been chosen to find her and return it to the totem pole it was being held in. So I went after this chick, when she attacks me and hits me over the head with a damn car and I wake up here. We haven't been able to find out anything about where pop went. He was supposed to meet me at the village at dawn a couple days ago, but the village is gone."

Hal nodded, knowing that she would be telling the truth; she didn't usually lie, and he liked to think that she wouldn't lie to her uncle. He also saw that the point was moot, anyways; her face was set and she had her mind made up. Besides, it was the only lead he could give her to find Ollie. "Do you know where this village is?" he asked.

"Yeah, it's in a clearing by the river. Or was."

That would explain the frantic digging he had seen. "Let's go then," he said, encasing her in a bubble of green energy. He thanked Booker, who looked thoroughly confused, and took her back to the clearing he had seen before. As he put her down to start her own search, he hovered above it, scanning for any time of energy or heat signature with his ring. He set loose a few small spectral constructs to wander the area, in case the village had become invisible somehow.

Eventually, he noted a slight blue glow on the ground nearby. He called Olivia forward, where she started to move away the snow. Underneath, she found a few small broken arrowheads. "Looks like something was here," she said. "But, where's the rest of the village?"

"Get to the side," Hal said, as he created a large green bulldozer, moving the earth quickly. It was only a few moments before Olivia had thrown a stone at him. Though it bounced harmlessly off his arm, it got his attention, and he turned. "What was that for?" he demanded.

"You're destroying the damn place!" she shouted. "Get rid of that thing and give me a shovel!"

He complied, and watched as she began to dig furiously, until she unearthed a long, two-foot log with carvings on it. "I….its can't be," she said, her eyes wide. "This is the totem pole. I was just climbing this thing three days ago. What is it doing six feet underground?"

"We might have to ask someone who knows a little bit more about it," Hal said. "Or who could get that information."

"Well, I know an archaeologist in Vancouver who might be able to identify this," she said thoughtfully, though there was still confusion in her voice.

"Why get him involved?" Hal asked. "There's a strange blue light emanating from this spot, and we can't afford to get anyone else involved. Why don't we go talk to Batman. He's in Las Vegas right now, it wouldn't take long to get there."

"I'm not leaving until I find pop."

"You have to leave to find him," he told her. Without another word, he once again put her in a thin green shell and propelled her through the sky, heading south as fast as he could. Last he could tell, he had gone to see Zatanna in Las Vegas. It would be a simple matter of just finding out which hotel room he was in, what with the ring. He could only hope he hadn't left yet.

Only a few minutes later were they in the penthouse apartment that was Zatanna's. She was dressed in a simple black shirt and slacks, Kamal sitting at a small marble table in a tuxedo with the jacket off. Though Hal was again in his suit, there was nothing to be done about Olivia; she looked a complete mess, hair tangled and unwashed, clothes grimy and dirty and grass-stained. To look at her clothes, one would think she was much younger than 19; to look at her face, she was much older.

"Well, I didn't expect a visit from you in person, Hal," Zatanna said, smiling. He smiled back. Whatever issues they may have had in the past, it was still good to see someone who reminded him of the old days. "Is Ollie going to be dropping in to join us?"

"No," Olivia said sourly. Zatanna looked over, frowning somewhat.

"How are you so certain, young lady?"

"This is his daughter, Zatanna," Hal said. "Olivia."

Zatanna nodded, as if a piece of a puzzle had gone into place. "Yes, I should have seen it before," she said. "You look a little beat up, are you all right?"

"Fine," Olivia said. "You're a magician, right? So you'd know about magic and all sorts of shit like that, right?" Hal cringed. Nothing could be done about that mouth, it seemed.

"Yes, you could say that," Zatanna replied. "Why do you ask?"

"Because I have been sent on some spiritual mission to find a talisman that gives the bearer the ability to use an animal's abilities. Pop and I were looking for the chick who stole it, and she beaned me pretty good with a damn car, and now I can't find pop. I went back to the town, and it's gone, there's just this strange blue glow according to Uncle Hal. And these." She put down one of the Indian arrowheads.

"Uncle Hal?" she asked, looking at Hal with amusement. He glared back.

"Yes. Uncle Hal. Can we get back to the topic?"

Zatanna nodded. "I'm sorry. It looks like your Uncle Hal noted a chronal disturbance."

"Chronal, like, time-related?" she asked. Hal could see the anger beginning to simmer. He wanted to warn Zatanna, but only for a second; it would be more interesting to see her have to face the girl's wrath.

"Yes."

"But, pop was supposed to meet me there. I mean, I was _there_. I don't know how to travel in time, how the hell did we get there in the first place?"

"It looks like you slipped into a crack," she said, looking at the arrowheads. "Yes, these objects definitely moved forward to this time, then back to their own. I would suspect your father is somewhere in the past."

"The past!" she nearly shouted, her fists balled up. "How the hell am I suppose to get him out of the past?"

"You probably have to finish whatever spiritual quest you were assigned," Zatanna said. "I am sure when you have the talisman, you will be able to pierce time again and get back to the village. Your father must be waiting for you there."

"Then we have to find her." Olivia turned to Kamal. "I need your help. We need to look up animal attacks in the area, anything that isn't explained easily. Like…a lion attack in Nebraska or something."

"I have it," Kamal said, going over to the computer. Hal watched as Olivia curled and uncurled her fists a few times, then turned without a word and went out to the balcony to be alone. He was about to follow, when Zatanna touched his arm.

"I'll talk to her," she said. "You should help Kamal. That's the best thing you can do for her right now."

Hal grudgingly nodded, then went to stand behind Kamal, as Zatanna left and closed the balcony doors behind her. After almost an hour, Hal was starting to grow worried and stopped his pacing to head out to the balcony.

"Don't bother," Kamal said. "They're not there. They probably went off dancing."

"How do you know?" Hal asked.

"I was listening in on the conversation. She asked what colors Olivia liked, then changed their clothing, and they teleported off the balcony about forty minutes ago. I think I also managed to find something interesting."

"A lead?" Hal asked, walking over and looking over his shoulder.

"An attack on a bank in Chicago, but it says here it looks like there was a bear who attacked the guards, and the vault door was torn clean off."

Hal nodded. "Looks like a place to start. I'm going to get some rest, I have to be back in Washington tomorrow and I think I may need to do some fast talking about how my car got stolen from a parking garage by a man who looked like me."

Kamal just gave him a look. "Go ahead. I'm going to keep following this lead," he said. Hal nodded and took off his suit jacket, then tried to stretch out on the couch, which was most definitely not designed for a six foot tall man to stretch out on. Eventually, he managed to fall asleep.

Olivia looked out over the balcony alone, at the colorful neon lights of the strip. She was angry at the colors for being so bright, angry at pretty much everything at that point. Anyone who saw her sulking would have thought that she was just told not to see a boy either too wild or too old for her, or that she was not able to take an overseas semester. She didn't care at that point what people had in their heads; she just wished that she could get the bleak thoughts that were swirling in hers out.

Behind her, she heard footsteps, then the sound of the door closing. She saw Zatanna out of the corner of her eye, mimicking her pose against the balcony's railing. "Hey," she said.

"Hey," Olivia replied.

"You know, you have your mother's beauty, and your father's attitude," Zatanna remarked.

"I'd rather not talk about my family right now, okay?" Olivia said, looking down. "I'm not up for discussing why, either."

"You know, I used to be a friend of your mother's, back when we were…well, when things were different. When you would have been welcomed with open arms. Kamal tells me you're in some sort of trouble."

"Yeah, well, I wanted to make people take notice of certain civil liberties being denied to Meta humans," she explained. "Homeland Security isn't thrilled about that."

"Definitely you father's attitude," she said. "You look like you could relax a bit. Have you ever been to Las Vegas before?"

Olivia shook her head. "No point in indulging in Sin City if you're not old enough to sin."

Zatanna smiled. "No need to worry about that right now. What's your favorite color?"

Olivia straightened up for the first time, giving her a mock glare. "What do you think?"

Zatanna nodded, and said something very strange. In the blink of an eye, Olivia found herself standing in the same place, suddenly dressed in a black and green plaid skirt, a white button-up shirt and a pair of shin-high black boots. After another odd phrase, she found herself standing on the roof of a building, the sign for the Rio blinking behind her. Zatanna was there as well, and she had a deadly serious look on her face. Olivia went to where her pocket would have been; not only was there no pocket, but she did not have her bow, either.

"We need to talk, Olivia," Zatanna said. "Please, hear me out."

"What are you talking about?" she asked.

"What would you do if you could change things?" she asked. Her tone was starting to frighten Olivia.

"What are you talking about?"

"The world shouldn't be the way it is," she said. "What if you could go back in time, and change one tiny detail, one detail that shouldn't have happened, and make everything better?"

"Are you nuts?" Olivia demanded. "You don't just go screwing with time."

"Time is like a set of interlocking cogs. If you put one wrong one in, it changes the way the other cogs act. But, if you change it out for a correct one, then the rest of the machine will work."

"But if you make just one gear spin backwards, the entire machine will blow up," Olivia pointed out, crossing her arms.

"Time is not so fragile," Zatanna said. "Wouldn't you like to change your life? Your father would never have become an alcoholic."

"He isn't anymore," she said.

"No one ever gets past that," Zatanna said gently. "And your mother's cancer would never have happened. Wouldn't you like that?"

Olivia turned away. "Of course I would!" she exclaimed. "But…if we change the past, if everyone stays as they were, mom and pop may never have gotten together, and I may never have been born."

"That will never change," Zatanna told her. "You may be 18, you may be 20, but I can assure you, you will be born. All we have to do is go back and change one tiny event, just save two people."

Olivia wanted to agree. The thought of what could have been, of changing the future by changing the past. To never have had to suffer the pain and tragedy; that is, until she realized that it was a _stupid_ idea. "You can't just go changing time just because you don't like what the present is like."

"I'm not talking about that," Zatanna said, her voice sounding strained. "I am talking about stopping an event that shouldn't have happened."

"What do you mean by 'shouldn't have happened'?" Olivia demanded. "If someone went back in the time stream and did something to fuck with it, then yes, I'm all for fixing it because someone already broke it. But if you want me to go back in time to change something just because you don't want to handle a rough life? Forget it!"

Zatanna sighed. "It's a shame. Your mother would have wanted your help."

That made Olivia turn around. "My mother?" she demanded, as Zatanna reached forward for her face "Wait!"

…

The dance floor was full. Olivia was soaked with sweat and a spilled white Russian that had been in her hand about an hour before. She smiled at the guy who was dancing in front of her, then turned her head to the one who was behind her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Zatanna smile and move off the dance floor, away from her.

The alarm the next morning went off at 7AM. Hal opened his eyes to see Kamal still at the computer. "They back yet?" he asked quietly. Kamal motioned to the bedroom with his head.

"They went in about forty five minutes ago, after a very interesting night," he said. "Better let them sleep."

Hal nodded. "I have to get back to DC. The senate will be meeting-" it hit him then; the time zone shift. Silently he cursed at himself. "It's already 10 on the east coast."

Kamal couldn't hide his smile. "Looks like you weren't feeling well this morning, Senator," he said.

"You'll let them know I left?"

"Get going."

Hal nodded, looking over at the closed door, then willing the ring to send him back to his home in Washington. In a burst of green energy, Hal was back in his house. Quickly, he changed into a new suit and was heading for the door, when he saw a shadow on the other side of the glass, approaching. He paused, waiting for the knock. When he opened it, he wished he hadn't; standing there, looking beautiful and dangerous, was Todd. She smiled to him and walked inside the entryway.

"Good morning, Senator Jordan," she said. "I trust you're feeling all right? It is a bit late for you to be getting up. Of course, it isn't too late on the west coast, is it?"

Hal frowned. The hell? "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I know that you do. You see, as a senator, my colleagues believed that you deserved a fair warning, before we start our probe. We know what you are up to, Senator Jordan. You and your green alter ego. It is in your best interests to cease all criminal activity immediately, or we will be forced to start an inquest. I would inform your rich friend and the magician of the situation as well. The girl…well, I have already made it clear to her, and with her current course, we will have no choice but to show her that we are not playing a child's game."

"I don't know what you're up to, Agent Todd, but I don't like being blackmailed," Hal growled.

"I am trying to serve my country, Senator. Isn't that what you do?" With that, she turned, opened the door, and left, leaving Hal standing there in shock. Her words had given away quite a bit. She already knew about Olivia, and had mentioned doing something about her, which meant she was at least involved in trashing Ollie's place and sending them off into the Canadian woods. In that case, it wouldn't be hard for her to come to him and threaten him, what with the phone call- simple voice recognition could have picked up and positively identified Ollie's voice. From him, the agent could have bugged Hal's phones and office, which would have led her back to Kamal. How she knew about Zatanna, however, had him stumped. He decided to stay home that day; he had a lot on his mind, and he needed to make a few phone calls.

Picking up the phone, he dialed Kamal's cell phone.

"Kamal Wayne."

"Kamal, it's Hal.

"Ah, Senator. Good to hear from you."

"Cut it, Kamal," Hal said. "I just got a visit from Agent Todd again. She knew about me, and about you and Zatanna, and I think she's the one who made Olivia and Ollie flee the country. She's going to be watching you now."

"Looks like it's time to start a war," Kamal growled from the other end. "You keep your head down. Give me a month; you won't have to worry about Homeland Security after that." With that, he hung up, and Hal put the phone down carefully. If his identity had been compromised, he could only hope… He picked up the phone again and dialed his office.

"Senator Jordan's office, can I help you?"

"Claudia, it's me."

"Senator, I was wondering when you would be coming in," she said.

"Listen. Todd just came back. She knows." There was silence on the other end of the line. "You need to be careful. She isn't above getting her hands dirty to find out what she wants to know. I just want you to be ready in case she makes a move."

"I understand. Thank you, Senator."

"Good bye, Claudia." He hung up and sighed, running a hand over his face. It was better that he decided not to go in to the chambers today; he still needed a shower and definitely a shave. Better to be presentable, especially if he was going to start working on the other senators for backing on the bill. Instead, he sat down in the small office in his house and began to write up the first draft of the bill.

An hour after the call from Hal, Kamal watched as Olivia stumbled out of the bedroom. Her hair was a mess, her gait unsteady as she reached out to lean against the wall, holding a hand up to her eyes. "Bright," she moaned, her voice hoarse. "I think someone's trying to beat my ass from the inside out."

"It's a hangover," he told her.

"Well, sorry for not knowing," she snapped, collapsing into the chair.

"Best thing to do is lie down until it passes."

"I was lying down all night."

Kamal looked over at her, one eyebrow raised, Ollie's words about holding him responsible for her running through his mind. Saying nothing, he turned back around. "I think we ran into a dead end on your talisman. There's nothing here on the internet that I can find."

"I told Uncle Hal that we shoulda gone to the archaeologist in Vancouver," she said.

Kamal frowned, turning again. "The one at the college?" He got an affirmative nod. "Hendrickson, right?" Again, an affirmative if somewhat perplexed nod. He reached for his cell phone. "Minshi, have the jet prepared, we're on our way to Vancouver."

"Right now?" Olivia asked, rubbing her temples.

"It's going to be at least a two hour trip. Besides, the sooner we get there, the sooner we can find out about this talisman and the village, and hopefully the sooner we can get it back."

That managed to bring her out of her indulgence in the hangover, and she rubbed her eyes again. "Is that coffee?" she asked, nodding towards the black pot on the table. Kamal poured a mug of it and handed it to her. "Thanks," she said, drinking almost half the mug in one gulp. "All right." Then, she looked down at herself. "Erm…."

"I have something you can wear," Zatanna said, standing now in the doorway.

Ten minutes later, Olivia was out of the ruined outfit and into a pair of blue jeans and a blue t-shirt, her hair pulled back with a black bandana. Kamal would wait until he got back to his jet to change; he had a few changes waiting for him. It was always good to be prepared… Speaking of which, he handed Olivia a small blueberry.

"What's this?" she asked.

"When Hal told me you went missing, I had tried calling your cell phone and found it was disconnected," he said. "You may need to get in touch with me quickly, in which case, you'll need that. I'll just report it stolen and forget to cancel the plan." He got only a half-aware smile in return. That was all he was about to get from her.

As soon as they were ready, they took the limo to the airport, and two and a half hours (and one ruined armrest from Olivia's nails) later, they were in a lecture hall at the University of Vancouver, listening in on a lecture about the Sumerians. At the front of the room was the professor, Dr. Hendrickson. He let the class go, reminding them of a reading assignment. As the students left the hall, he and Olivia made their way up to the front. He tapped Olivia on the arm as she turned her head, reminding her that she was there to find out about the village and the talisman, _not_ to find a boyfriend for the weekend.

"Uh, Dr. Hendrickson?" Olivia said quietly, with a meekness that surprised Kamal. She had always seemed to be headstrong and confident before; why was she suddenly quiet and uncertain? "Hi, I'm Olivia Queen. You may not remember me, but…"

"Yes, yes, the internet course," he said. "Very interesting thesis you had on your term paper." His eyes traveled up. "And Mister Wayne. I have to say, thank you very much for your grant. You allowed us to expand our library faster than we could have hoped."

"It was my pleasure," Kamal said.

"Listen, I wanted to know if you could help us with something," Olivia said, handing him the old arrowheads she had gotten. "I wanted to know if you could identify these."

Hendrickson frowned for a moment, looking them over carefully. "These seem to be of Central Pacific origin. Some tribe around here?"

"I think so. I also wanted to know, if maybe you'd heard anything about maybe some sort of talisman that this type of tribe might have had. It's got a big hawk at the top, open mouth, with animals all over it. It's supposed to convey the wearer with the power of animals or something."

Hendrickson frowned, then turned to a large book on his desk. Flipping through it, he mumbled to himself, until he stopped on a page. Indeed, drawn there was a small wooden object similar to what Olivia had described. "This is known as the Spirit Talisman. It is an old folk legend, more than anything. A tribe of native Americans was supposed to have protected this talisman from evil, but no one was ever able to find the village where it may have been."

"I think I can show you where it is," she said.

"Actually, was there anyone else looking for this information," Kamal interjected. Going to the site would not get them any closer to the thief, he knew. He needed to ask the questions; he was the impartial party.

Hendrickson frowned. "Now that you mention it, yes. A young woman from the Chicago Sun came here about a month ago, asking about the piece for an article she was writing."

"That's odd, the Sun went out of business six years ago."

"It was bought by the Times, is all," Kamal said offhandedly. "You wouldn't happen to have a name for this reporter?"

"Yes…yes, her name was Valerie Swift." Excellent- now, he at least had a name to run through the DMV databases and get an idea of where she may have gone to ground.

"If something's about…I dunno…six feet underground, how long do you think it's been around?" Olivia asked.

"Well, judging from what I know of this area, and from these arrowheads," Hendrickson said, putting the small pieces of stone down, "I'd say it's been about two thousand years."

Kamal watched as the girl lost her breath, her eyes going wide. "T-two thousand?"

"More or less, yes."

"I can show you where the place is," she said quickly.

"Are you certain?" he asked. "It would be a great archaeological find."

Olivia nodded. "It's where got those from. I also found part of a totem pole that is the same as the talisman. It's only a few mi- eh, kilometers away from here. I can guide you."

It was only two hours until they were at the site, and Kamal had figured out why Olivia had been so adamant to find the place; she thought it might have some clue as to what had happened to her father. While she looked worried and tired, Hendrickson looked excited as he went around the area. "This is incredible!" he gushed, looking at the half-unearthed remains. "It looks like a bulldozer ran through here, but I think there is enough to salvage. Yes,indeed, these ruins are rather old."

"Are you going to excavate the site?" she asked.

"As soon as I can, but I have to wait for the province to give us the permits and the grant."

"I can help them move the process along," Kamal said. "If you'll excuse us?" He grabbed Olivia by the arm and led her over to the river, as Hendrickson began to look through the remains of a roof. "Why are you really here?"

"You don't have anything that can take X-Rays of the area, do you?" she asked.

"I might. Why?"

"If pop went back in time to this place, his skeleton would be here, right?"

"Perhaps. But there could be many skeletons here. How would I know his?"

Olivia rolled her eyes. "Because he's the only one without a left arm. There couldn't have been that many people without an arm in this vilkage, and besides, I think the skeletons of everyone else will be broken and in one pile. Just trust me on this one."

Kamal nodded, looking down at the watch on his right wrist. He pressed in the plate, turning it into a small screen. He whispered a few things into it, and started to walk over the area that Olivia specified as the most likely place he would have been. When he found the skeleton, he removed the watch and handed it to her. "I think we found him."

Her hands shaking, Olivia took the watch. Her face drained of emotion and color, as she stared blankly at the display. Her mouth was open, but she didn't say anything. Shock; he wasn't surprised, not especially from what he had seen from her before. Bow and skills or not, she was just a kid, and it hurt when a kid finds out that her parents aren't immortal.

Gently, he took back his watch, replacing it on his wrist and pressing the faceplate in once more. That jerked her out of her daze, and her jaw set with grim determination, and with almost unbridled anger. "We have to get to Chicago," she said. "We get that talisman from that bitch, and we get back here as soon as we can."

"I'll come with you," Kamal said.

"Don't get in my way," she said in return- probably the closest thing to an acceptance that he was going to get.

It was night in Chicago. On the way, Olivia had found the only thing that could conquer her fear of flying- her anger. She ignored Kamal as he started to look up Valerie Swift, finding her address on the 25th floor of the Chrysler Building, her run as a columnist for the Sun-Times. She just wanted to see her taken down. She was so angry, she barely registered the call from Kamal's attendant, something about a Druid clock having gone missing.

Skimming across the ledge on the 25th floor of the Chrysler Building, Olivia's mind suddenly became sharp again. Her anger disappeared into titanium resolve, her hand holding her bow tightly. With Batman's help (as he was now fully dressed as the Batman, just as she was in the tattered remnants of her cloak), she would be able to disable the woman and get the talisman.

He motioned to a window, and Olivia looked in. It was the apartment that he had said was registered to the name Valerie Swift, but the woman inside was not the one she had seen; she was elderly, with white hair, sitting in front of the TV with a bag of popcorn.

The sound of a shoe on the stone was the only warning they had. Coming down from above them was Swift, knocking the both of them off the edge. Olivia reached over and grabbed the ledge quickly, swinging up and onto it as Batman went plummeting towards the street. Unfortunately, Olivia didn't have time to worry about him; swift was standing right in front of him.

"No cars up here, little girl," she said.

"I'm not looking for a car, I thought I told you that?" she growled, flipping back as the woman swiped like a tiger. She kept moving, quickly, avoiding the blows. "If it wasn;t for you, my father wouldn't be trapped in the past."

"I don't give a damn."

Olivia narrowed her eyes. "Wrong thing to say," she said, as she saw Batman climbing back up onto the ledge behind swift. He went for a punch to the knee, but she grabbed his arm and snapped it with sickening ease. Olivia didn't pause; she pulled her bow and fired a net at her. Though she tore right out, it gave Batman a chance to set the bone and get back into the fight. Each time he struck at her, she touched the talisman, changing her abilities. It was then that Olivia realized what she had to do.

As she moved her hand sideways to balance herself on the ledge, Olivia pulled back with another one of the drill-tipped arrows, letting it loose into Swift's hand. She screamed as the arrow drilled straight through and out the other side, and she turned again to Olivia. By then, she was ready with another arrow, and she let loose again, pinning the other hand to the brick.

Before her eyes, Swift pulled her hand away, tearing it through the fingers, then made it reform, tendons and muscle and bone knitting back together. She smiled as she ducked another blow from Batman, stretched her arms, and leapt off the edge, gliding easily.

_Not that easy!_ Olivia thought, leaping as well, landing on the woman's back. She tried to get her off by twisting, but Olivia was not letting go. She tried to swipe for the talisman, but she couldn't reach it. Before she realized what had happened, she was rolling off of her back, onto the roof of the Macy's building. There, she saw a burst of dark movement, as Batman flew out from the shadows, knocking her down. Olivia loosed another net, pinning her in place. This time, she struggled against it, but could not break through. Sighing in relief, Olivia lowered her bow, and Batman reached over and pulled the Talisman from her neck.

"Not a good idea to talk about my pop like that," she spat at the woman.

"You got what you wanted," Batman said.

"I don't mean to be anal about this, but since I'm the chosen one or whatever, I should probably have the talisman." She held out her hand, as he dropped the tiny wooden necklace into her hand. Suddenly, she felt something, a power in her, a power waiting to be used.

"I have to get back to Gotham," he said. "I have a war to start." He moved over to the side of the high rise and fell off. By the time Olivia looked over, all trace of him was gone. She looked down at the talisman, and imagined a hawk. Suddenly, she felt as though there were wings on her back, wings that she could move. In moments, she was in the air, making her way back to Canada, to the village.

To get back her father.

Kamal had gotten the call from Hal a half hour into his trip back from Chicago. He had requested that come to DC for a few friendly rounds, and told him that he would be welcome that night if he were in the area. He knew what Jordan was trying to say, and with the urgency in his voice, Kamal couldn't help but oblige. It was only an hour later that he landed at Reagan airport, and was brought to the senator's home by limo.

Inside, Hal rushed him into the kitchen area. He had the microwave running and a blender going. "Look, I think I know of a way that we can cover our asses," Hal said.

Kamal nodded carefully. "Go on."

"Green Lantern and I can't be in the same place at the same time, right?" Hal asked. "It's just not possible if we're the same person. So, we're going to be seen in the same place at the same time."

"What are you-" Kamal stopped, as Hal reached into his pocket, pulling out the small green ring. "You are certain you want to give this to me?" Briefly, his memory flashed back to a small storage locker he had found in the Cave, labeled 'CONTINGENCY'. Inside were lock boxes, each with a hero's name on it. He was suddenly thinking back to the four lock boxes that were labeled Green Lantern.

"I am going to address the press tomorrow on something. I'll figure out what exactly tomorrow morning. I need you to show up as Green Lantern and make certain people see you. That way, there can be no doubt that I am _not_ Green Lantern."

"How do I use this?" Kamal asked, looking at the ring and he put it on. The ring changed shape to fit snugly around his left pinky finger. It felt like any other ring.

"You need to concentrate," Hal told him. "Above all else, you have to keep focused. The moment you lose your focus, you'll lose control of the ring. Now, I need you to imagine yourself looking like me. Just focus on it. _Make_ it happen."

Kamal closed his eyes, struggling to picture the senator as his Green Lantern persona. It seemed like the ring was draining away at his very body, exhausting him. "Good," he heard Hal say. "You have to keep your focus, at all times. That's the most important thing. The ring feeds off of your willpower. You will whatever you want into existence. Use that to get their attention, then disappear."

Kamal nodded, letting the image go. Gingerly, he pulled the ring off and put it in his pocket. "It's exhausting," he said, struggling to keep his eyes open. "That is what it's like to be a Green Lantern?"

Hal nodded. "That's why not many people become Green Lanterns," he said. "These rings were made by little demigods, not designed for mortals like us."

"But you seem to have no trouble wielding it," Kamal said. "In fact, father had some very interesting things about you in the Bat Computer's databanks, though it is fragmented. A lot of the data was lost."

Hal seemed somewhat relieved to hear the last part. An interesting mystery, and one he would have to work on; what was in Hal Jordan's past that he wanted the world to forget about? "Tomorrow morning, 9 AM Eastern time. Be ready."

"You will be without your ring for a whole day," Kamal said. "What will you do if someone decides to cause trouble?"

Hal smiled, then held up his left hand, where a yellow ring sat. It glowed yellow for a moment, then sat back. "I've been practicing with this thing all day, making certain it worked just like my green one. It does. If anyone tries to cause any trouble, I'll be ready for them. You just keep your eyes open." As an afterthought, he added, "Oh if you see any little blue aliens, run."

"Who are they?"

"They're the demigods who want their ring back, and you can't fight them. Trust me." Kamal only nodded. "You better get back to Gotham, before anyone starts asking questions."

"You watch your back," Kamal warned, seeing himself to the door.

The journey back to the village was unlike any Olivia had ever experienced. She had only flown in aircraft or from the emerald energy, and she found that being in control of her movement vanquished the fear that had taken root in her. The landscape was beautiful, especially going over the cities whose lights lit up the night with multi-colored globes. It was nearly four hours to get from Chicago to the village, but she didn't feel tired; part of it may have been the adrenaline running through her veins. Her mind was still filled with questions: What if the village did not reappear as it should? What if it had moved, and she had no way to find it? What if the talisman was damaged, and it wouldn't be accepted as it was? The ultimate point of all the questions was her fear that she could do nothing to reverse her father's death.

Finally, she came to the clearing, and landed in what would have been the center of the village. "Old man! I've got it!" she shouted into the night. Off to her right she heard a rustle in the bushes as something scurried away from the sound of her voice. Olivia stepped forward, and soon the buildings began to appear, forming again right where they should have been. Where the fire had been in the center of town, there was now merely a pile of broken and charred bones, piled up as high as her shoulder. Avoiding the bone pile, she made her way back to the totem pole, which finally finished forming the moment she touched the base. Touching the talisman again, she felt small claws on her fingertips, though she could see nothing, and began to scale the 20 foot pole with ease. As she did, she felt something tugging at the back of her mind.

_The village appeared just because you have the talisman. If you keep it, you can come back here anytime you want. The power would certainly be helpful. There would be no more need to keep running._

_But, pop…._

_He's dead. He doesn't care right now. It's not like he's going anywhere. Besides, the talisman allows you to come back here anytime you want. You return it when you're ready, and then he'll come back._

_For a moment, Olivia stopped, but then shook her head._

"No," she said aloud, as though the voice in her head was coming from a person nearby. "No, forget it. I'm not going to give in like that. I saw what this thing can do. Besides, it was my duty to return the talisman, not wield it. The Old Man wants me to bring it back so that it can be protected. If something happens to me, the talisman's back in the wrong hands. I don't take advantage of people like that."

_It is only using your resources. He wouldn't mind if you just borrowed it, especially if you're attempting to do something good._

"Doing good in and of itself is right, but using the wrong means isn't going to help anyone. I can't lie down at night knowing that I've stolen my father's freedom while struggling to give other people theirs. I fight the good fight in my own way, and I haven't needed the damn talisman before, and I sure as hell don't need it now. I have my bow, I have my instincts, and that's enough. This talisman goes back, the Old Man gets to guard it, and I get pop back. End of story!"

She finished climbing up the totem and pulled the talisman violently from her neck

_No!_

Quickly, she threw it back into the tiny cavity in the bird's beak, having to regain her grip as the claws disappeared and she was once again left with only her fingers. Olivia slid down the pole, jumping the rest of the way down, and turned to the building that she had last seen the Old Man in. There was no movement, and she started to feel her chest constricting.

"You are definitely the agent of the Spirits," she heard a voice from behind her. "You successfully defeated the thief and yourself, and have returned the talisman to it's rightful place." Turning, she saw the Old Man walking towards her, her father just behind him.

"See? I told you she'd be able to do it."

She couldn't keep the smile off her face as she ran forward, throwing her arms around her father's neck. "hey there, relax. I'm all here. Mostly."

"I was worried," Olivia said. "This is back in time, and I was lost in the woods, and we found your skeleton…"

"Indeed, this village exists outside of time," the Old Man said. "It is a place where we protect the talisman, so that evil may never be able to use it."

"Well, you're going to be on display in two thousand years," Olivia told him, as she leaned away. "Your culture and people will be a great learning experience."

He shook his head "No. No, this village cannot remain here any longer. We must move it, so that evil cannot find it again."

Olivia frowned. "But, it's already being excavated," she argued. "I already showed this place to someone, you can't just move, it'd change what I've done."

"There is no need for you to fear, child," the Old Man said. Olivia ground her teeth together; she _hated_ being called that. "You will return back to your time."

"Why didn't you tell me you were going to keep my father as collateral, huh?" she argued.

"It was the will of the spirits that he was not to assist you on this quest. You alone were the chosen one. Now, it is time for you to return. There is great turmoil in your time, and you are strong enough to combat it. Go."

Olivia looked at him, as the buildings began to fade out. She felt a hand on her shoulder, and turned. "You did good."

They were three words that Olivia had not heard in years, especially from her father. She smiled, feeling her face blush. "Thanks," she said, looking down at the ground. "We need to get going. A lot's happened since you were dead….again….is that right?"

"Doesn't matter," Ollie replied. "It's dark, we gotta find shelter for the night. Let's go."

The television, as usual, was tuned to LNN. It was a rather slow Friday, as most of them were. There was ongoing debate about medicare taxation, and currently the senator from California was on, speaking out against them. The screen was split, the right hand side showing anchor Fox Rusher as he commented on the remarks made by the man on the right side of the screen, identified on the bottom banner as Hal Jordan (R-CA). He was rambling on about how taxing the medicare system was a fault, how there were better ways to generate the revenue needed. He was in the tenth minute of his speech, and it seemed that he had plenty to continue on with.

Suddenly, Rusher stopped talking, holding his ear as he listened to the bud. "This just in," he said. "It seems that the Green Lantern, who has just recently begun to make appearances again despite twenty five years of absence, has been sighted over Los Angeles. We go to Tricia Hernandez who is on location. Tricia?"

The side of the screen with Rusher on it changed to a beautiful latin woman in a brown suit. "This is Tricia Hernandez with LNN local Los Angeles. Just moments ago, a high-speed police chase was the center of attention, as the Green Lantern once again made appearance here. Now, it is known that Green Lantern was active in Coast City over a generation ago, but no one seems to know why he has suddenly appeared now. We have live footage of the chase, and…"

The woman was off the screen again, though Jordan was still talking on the right hand side of it. In the left hand portion, a helicopter was watching the freeway as a car was speeding across it recklessly, over a dozen squad cars behind it. Above it, pacing it, was Green Lantern, swooping back and forth as he slowly descended on the escaping vehicle. Only a minute later, a large green hand appeared from the hero, pushing down on the trunk of the car to stop it. The wheels were smoking in protect, until the hand lifted the car easily and set it upside down. As the police descended don't he car, Green Lantern ascended, headed up through the clouds and into what seemed like space.

Jordan was still talking. A slim, feminine hand reached over and grabbed the remote, touching the power key gently with one long fingernail. The TV obediently went off.

Hal smiled to himself as he sat down in his office. The press conference had gone surprisingly well, especially when the reporter from the Gotham News Network showed up to shake his hand- and hand him his ring back. He would have to congratulate Kamal on such a good disguise. He was starting to remind him more and more of Bruce every day, which was heartening and disturbing at the same time. Hopefully, Kamal would not have the same dark streak the elder Wayne had.

A few minutes later, his intercom buzzed. "Senator? There's…there's someone here to see you," Claudia said, sounding nervous.

Over the comm, he heard a man say, "Just let me in there, damn it!" His first thought was that Ollie had somehow gotten from BC to DC, but the voice was wrong. "Forget it, I'm going in."

"You can't go in there, sir!" Hal took his hand off the intercom and stood up, as the door to his office swung open. He was standing face to face with a man slightly shorter than himself, though a little wider, and not from fat. His recognized the face and the red, bowl-cut hair immediately.

"What are you doing here, Guy?" Hal asked.

"The Guardians want their ring back, Hal old buddy, and I'm here to get it."

"They gave you a ring again?" he asked. "They must be dredging the bottom of the barrel."

"Just give it up, Jordan, and it won't get ugly." He had his fist ready, already glowing with green energy. Hal knew that witnesses would be coming soon; someone was attacking a US Senator.

"Are you nuts, Guy? The MCC will have you split and quartered if you don't put that thing away."

"I'm not afraid of them. Now, the ring, buddy."

Hal shook his head, and willed the door shut behind Guy. "You never could follow orders, could you?"

The fight began with Guy sending a blast of Green energy straight at Hal. He threw him back against the wall, but did little more than that. He stalked forward a pace, his hand glowing green again. "The ring."

"You want it? Fine." Hal pulled off the ring and tossed it up in the air. As he did, he brought up his left hand- and the yellow ring. He had never put it away for safe keeping, and now he was glad that he hadn't. The yellow energy blasted him against the door. Guy picked himself up and shook it off, then glared.

"You're gonna regret that, buddy," he told him, as he unleashed another bolt of pure emerald energy. Hal managed to roll out of the way, as it tore through the wall. He could see outside now, and suddenly he heard gunshots from outside. Guy turned, and used his ring to seal the door. "No one's gonna interrupt me now."

While he was distracted, Hal focused his own will, taking his large desk and hurling it at the man's head. The desk shattered harmlessly, though it did get Guy's attention again. He turned back, grinning. His grin faded, however, when he looked out of the gaping hole he had left. Coming up on the building were six attack helicopters, the kind that had taken him from Gotham to DC. Hal winced; the MCC was already descending. "You can't win, Guy. They'll take you in."

"No one's taking Guy Gardner anywhere," he said, pushing Hal aside physically to stand in the gaping hole. He brought up his arm, leveled the ring, and fired a thin slice of energy at one of the helicopters, tearing the tail assembly off.

Hal narrowed his eyes; whoever this man was now, he wasn't deserving of a power ring. He leveled the yellow ring at the back of Guy's head, pouring all of his willpower into it, and let loose with a ballooning ray of yellow. It hit him square on the back of the skull, knocking him out cold. To keep him safe, Hal reached over and grabbed his ring, then picked up his own ring room the floor. With the three rings on his hand, Hal felt a decidedly uncomfortable feeling of déjà vu. He remembered, and he didn't want to. From there, it was time to make a decision; he wouldn't be able to explain how he, Hal Jordan, a senator, was able to overcome a Meta-human, and even if he did, he knew Todd would tear the story apart, and to leave meant a thousand witnesses. The security outside was already banging on the door, and with Gardner out, they'd be in in moments.

Hal looked down at the yellow ring, and concentrated. He put Guy in an opaque yellow bubble and made himself glow brightly, so that none would be able to recognize him. He couldn't leave Guy at the mercy of the MCC- they had none, and Guy had come through for him in the past. He owed him that much. Flying out of the hole in his wall, Hal made for the only place he knew would be desolate- Antarctica, and the Fortress of Solitude.

It was a half hour later that he approached, and was surprised at what he saw. The walls were being repaired, the damage he had done was disappearing, replaced with new walls of ice. He flew down to the snowy ground, next to the man who was making the repairs, as he used his heat beams to melt the ice into place, then freeze over again. He turned to Hal and the unconscious Guy. "What is this?"

"It looks like the Guardians want their power ring back. He attacked a US Senator in his own office, and I needed someplace safe to keep him."

Clark narrowed his eyes. "Does this look like a place to house rejected heroes?"

Hal cocked one eyebrow. "Look, I just need to keep him here for a couple days until this blows over. If the MCC gets a hold of him, they'll know I'm a Green Lantern."

"That isn't my problem," Clark said, turning away.

"No?" Hal asked. "It won't be your problem when they come for you and demand you be killed? You may be Superman, but even you have weaknesses. Kamal had kryptonite, and so did Ollie. You think the government can't get a hold of it?" Clark paused a moment. "I just need you to let me keep him here a couple days."

"Why did he attack you in the first place?" Clark asked.

"Because he was trying to take my ring back for the Guardians."

"I didn't know the Guardians had yellow rings anymore."

Hal felt something snap into place in his mind. "You're right. Here." He pulled off his own ring. "I need you to destroy this. In front of him. So he knows I'm no longer a threat. He'll leave, the Guardians leave. I use the yellow ring."

"You had three rings?" Clark asked. His voice was tight; he remembered, too. Hal shook his head, taking Guy's ring and putting it in his closed hand.

"That wasn't what I was trying to do," he said, as he woke Guy. His eyes snapped open, and he pulled back for a punch before Clark spoke.

"You need to se this, Guy." He took the ring between his palms and squeezed. Hal shut his eyes, shielding his face as the emerald energy exploded between the Kryptonian's hands. When he truned back around, he saw that he was somewhat disheveled from the blast, but otherwise safe. "He's no longer a Green Lantern. That was Hal's ring, and it's gone. You can leave him alone."

Guy glared at Hal. "All right. Fine. I believe you. No, really, I do. But how can you prove it?"

"Check for yourself," Hal said. "I have no emerald energy on me."

Guy frowned at him. "Yeah. Yeah, all right, fine. Thanks for the party. I mean it, really. But this isn't over between us, Jordan."

"I'm sure it isn't," Hal said. He watched as Gardner glowered at him one more time, then disappeared, off to who knew where. He looked at Clark, who looked back at him, then went back to the repairs. Hal resigned himself to the chore of trying to explain his survival to the MCC. He used the yellow ring to lift himself into the air, on his way to Fairfax. It would be a hike, to be certain, but flying back into DC was a mistake he knew not to make. He needed to smooth things over, and he wasn't going to have much time to do it in.

Back in Gotham, Kamal was starting to mobilize his effort to find the thief of the clocks. He had first planned to stalk out the one in China, but to leave Gotham for an indefinite period was a waste; it would be easier to catch the thief when she was not on her guard, which meant when she was not looking out for security. Given the description, Kamal began to make a list of any black-haired woman he knew that had access to arcane magic. His list currently had Zatanna, Circe, and Morgana on it, and was at it's end. It was time to get more information from a different approach.

He called up the newspaper particles on the Bat Computer, looking for a name, any name, of a witness to either one of the heists. He found one, a Mr. Owen Bellini from Philadelphia. Gathering the components for his disguise- black suit, false Homeland Security badge, sunglasses, notepad, photo- he prepared his car and was soon on his way to the bridge, into Pennsylvania.

He arrived at the man's house just after dinnertime, walking up and knocking on the door authoritatively. A very slight man answered the door, with pale skin and thin glasses that seemed less fragile than he was. "Hello Mr Bellini, I'm Agent Aramin with Homeland Security, would you mind if I came in and asked you a few questions?" he said quickly, forcing his way into the house.

"Oh, no, not at-"

Kamal cut him off; he didn't want him talking before he got to the questions he wanted to know about. "Mr. Bellini, I have a report here saying you witnessed a theft at the Smithsonian Institute last week and I was wondering if I could find out a little bit more about the testimony you gave to the newspaper and the police. Now, you claim that a woman with black hair, a black suit, and a red cape entered the area, seemingly from nowhere, is that correct?"

"Yes, I-"

"And did this woman speak to you or anyone else?"

"Well, no, but she did speak. I just couldn't understand it."

"Was it some sort of foreign language?" Kamal asked.

"I-I think so," the man floundered. "I-I didn't understand."

"Could you possibly recreate any of the words you hear phonetically, Mr. Bellini?"

The man paused a moment. "yeah, sure, sure. I mean, she stood outside the display and put her hand out and said something and the clock just appeared in her hand. It was like…emik...emook…em-something."

Kamal wrote it down phonetically, then began to look at the word. It wasn't Greek- so Circe was off the list. It didn't seem old English or Celtic, either, which only left one option. As soon as he looked at it backwards, he knew.

"Was it 'emoc' by any chance, sir?"

"Yeah, yeah, I think it was," he said.

"Well, we thank you very much for your cooperation in our investigate," Kamal told him quickly, "if we have any other questions, we will call on you again, thank you for your time." With that, he turned and left, his fists clenched tightly. He had been there, in Las Vegas, with her. What else had she lied about? He tried to think back on what else they had discussed. The clocks, and Dinah.

Once back in his car, he called the mansion, and Minshi answered. "Minshi, I need you to tell me the last credit card purchase made on Dinah Queen's card," he said.

"Of course, Master Wayne," she said. "It was a plane ticket and a room at the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas."

"Thanks, Minshi," he said sourly, disconnecting the call. He dialed Hal's cell phone, but got nothing but the voice mail. "Hal, Kamal. We need to get back to Las Vegas. I think Zatanna was in my head. Call me back." He hung up again, and dialed his 'stolen' phone.

"Hey." Not exactly the greeting he would have expected, but he reminded himself that he _was_ dealing with Olivia.

"Bitch lied to me," he growled.

"What?"

"She was in my head. I'm going to Las Vegas. Meet me there."

"I can't get there," she said. Not for- pop says it'll be a day before we hit Vancouver, we can get a flight from there."

"See you then," he said, hanging up the phone. He raced back to the manor, as Minshi greeted him at the front door.

"Master Wayne, your jet has been prepared at the airport. You can leave whenever you are ready."

Olivia put the phone back in her pocket, shaking her head.

"What was that all about?" Ollie asked.

"Kamal thinks Zatanna did something to him, was inside his head or something," she said.

"Yeah, well, that wouldn't surprise me," he replied. "I've seen what she can do. She did it to his father, quite a few years ago."

"Zatanna mind wiped Batman?" Olivia asked. "I don't get it. She was part of the JLA, right?"

"Yeah, but we didn't always see eye to eye."

"You didn't see eye to eye with anyone there, pop," Olivia reminded him.

"Well, she and your mother got along pretty well." Suddenly he stopped, eyes going wide for just a moment. "That bitch."

"Okay, that's two out of the three of us voting she's a bitch," Olivia said impatiently. "What's the matter?"

"Give me your phone," he demanded. There was an intensity in his voice and eyes that made her silently obey. After a moment, he got an answer. "What was she hiding from you, Kamal? Damn it. I'll be there as soon as I can. I know. Be careful." He closed the phone violently and handed it back to her. "We're going to Las Vegas to visit Zatanna. I have a feeling she may know something about where your mother's been."


	3. Chapter 3 Family

By the time Hal had gotten to Virginia, it was already dark on the east coast. From his high vantage point, he saw a very disturbing scene in the capitol- there were attack choppers in the sky and fighter jets, lights were shining everywhere. Tanks had even been brought in and were placed, and men in uniforms were swarming the city. He landed just outside of Fairfax, in a small grove of trees, trying to plan his next move. As he was thinking, he heard the tone from his cell phone indicating a voice mail. Looking at the face, it read 20 missed calls and 18 messages. He checked them quickly, using that as an excuse to procrastinate his plan-making. Most of them were from Claudia, trying to find out where he was and if he was all right; the others were also concerned people, trying to get a hold of him. He put the cell phone away, and then looked at himself. If he was going to use an abduction story, he was going to have to make it believable.

He tore up his suit, smudging it with dirt and grass, and used the ring to bruise his face and arms. Once that had been accomplished, he began his long walk into the capitol, searching for one of the main freeways. He was hoping to be picked up by a cop for walking on the road, but when he got there, he was shocked to see the entire road going in to DC packed. The other side, on contrast, was completely empty. Walking up the road, he saw people had gotten out of their cars. Some were standing on the hoods and roofs, trying to get a better look of what was going on up ahead.

After nearly two hours of walking, Hal felt just as bad as he looked. Finally coming up to the cause of the congestion, he paused. In the freeway, across all the lanes, was a military blockade. There were jeeps and a tank sitting in the middle of the road, with barriers placed in front of them. People were angry; shouting at the MP's who stood at the barricades in full riot gear. Snapping out of his daze, Hal walked forward, until an MP put his hand out.

"I'm sorry, sir, you aren't allowed to pass."

"It's illegal to hold a senator from attending congress," Hal said. "Let me through."

"Sir?"

"I'm Senator Hal Jordan, and I need to get through."

The MP shook his head. "I'm sorry, Senator, but General Breckman gave us strict orders to make certain no one breaks the quarantine."

_Quarantine?_ How stupid; a Meta human had attacked the Capitol building and damaged it. He should have expected as much. "I need to speak with your commanding officer, then." He glanced at the man's shoulders, noting the rank. "Lieutenant."

He motioned for Hal to wait, and took out a small walking talkie. He spoke into it for a few minutes, then walked back up again. "The General will see you. He asks if you require any medical assistance." His gaze went over the senator, noting the cuts, scrapes, and bruises.

"I could use an ice pack," Hal said.

The MP motioned for him to follow, causing a maelstrom of shouts and protests. Hal moved through quickly as the gap was filled with three more MP's to calm the crowd. He was taken behind the line of vehicles, to a small chair. "Wait here, sir, and we'll have the medic check you out."

Hal nodded, noting that two more MP's had taken up positions behind him. They could be seen to the untrained eye as guards, but he knew they were guarding the blockade just as much as they were guarding him. He waited, looking around, as the medic approached and inspected his self-inflicted wounds. As expected, he said they were not severe, and gave him a pain reliever and cleaned out the cuts before bandaging them. He was informed that the general would be along shortly, and to please wait exactly where he was. Hal obliged, knowing that it might be his only way to find out what exactly was going on in the city.

Almost an hour later, a jeep rolled up to the blockade. Out of it stepped a man, small but very stout, with a face that belied his military experience. It was mostly in his eyes; Hal had seen it from other commanding officers, and he wasn't surprised to see it in Breckman, especially with the two stars he wore. As he approached, Hal stood up. "General."

"Senator," he said in reply. "This is a very puzzling situation for us. You see, you have been reported dead. I'll need to see your identification."

"Of course." Hal pulled out his wallet and handed him his ID. Breckman looked at it for only a moment before returning it to him.

"Well, Senator, looks like you've had quite a trip."

"I need to get back into the city," he said.

"I'm afraid we can't do that, senator," Breckman told him. "No civilians are permitted into or out of the city while the investigation is under way. No exceptions."

"To keep a senator from attending congress-"

"Right now, congress isn't in session," Breckman corrected him. Hal blinked; usually, a crisis of that magnitude would call for an emergency session. Were they afraid that the Meta humans were targeting congressmen? "We're going to see if we can confirm a clear route to the hospital and get you admitted as soon as we can. I'm sorry about this, senator, but you were… well, we all thought you had been killed. You'll understand if we take certain precautions."

"Of course, General," Hal replied. He didn't like it, but he didn't have much choice. All he could do was wait.

As the siren went off, Kamal was pleased to hear no sound coming from it. He looked at the small device he had built, making certain the test had done nothing to damage it. Once he was satisfied with the results, he took the small thing and put it into the shaft of a small dart he had designed specifically to hold the new weapon. He knew Zatanna; knew that, in order for her to cast her spells, she had to speak them. Backwards, yes, but that was inconsequential at that point; she wouldn't be able to cast if she couldn't speak, hence the need for his newest little toy.

Finished 'packing' for Las Vegas, Kamal now turned his attention to his city. It had been quite a few nights since the Batman had made his presence known; it was time for the criminal element to remember that he owned the city. Just as the last echoes of light were disappearing in the sky, Batman made his way out into Gotham night, to a low-income housing district known as Bricktown. It was built mostly of row homes and churches, and at the moment, he started down form the top of the closed-down Episcopalian church at the corner of Red and Sixth. Things were quiet so far, but he expected trouble; there was always trouble. Unfortunately, trouble hit hard.

Nearly a mile down the road, Batman could see a large smoke cloud billowing black against the nearly purple sky, obscuring his view of the waning moon. Quickly, he hopped from the roof, calling for the Bat mobile as he fell. The roof slid back, and he dropped into the seat with vehicle in mid-motion, settling in behind the controls as he sped down the street, towards the smoke.

Pulling into a small alley, Batman crept along the shadows towards the center of the conflagration. He managed to keep his eyes from going wide, as he saw the entire block facing State Street on the East side consumed by flames. People were screaming, trying to get away from the flames- unless they lived across the street, in which case they watched form their own row homes. As the fire spread, so did the damage.

Moving quickly, Batman entered through the window of the nearest building, going from house to house through the holes in the walls. The oxygen mask on his cowl had swung into place, allowing him to breathe while in the acrid smoke that was filling the building, hindering his sight. As he was about to rush through another wall, he heard a soft scraping sound. Turning, he noted a door moving back and forth, the handle moving as if someone were trying to unstuck it from the other side. Not that it would have done them any good; a flaming support beam had fallen down in front of the door, if anyone had managed to get the door open the beam would have prevented them from leaving the room.

Running over, he pulled back, breaking the beam with a swift blow to the center. The beam itself crumbled in two, straight to the floor, leaving the door open. Grabbing the handle, her twisted and pulled. The door came back obediently, and he was left looking into the face of a frightened black girl, no more than seven, clutching a singed bear and burned blanket. Behind him, Batman heard an ominous creaking; with the support beam gone and the door opened, the structure wasn't going to stand much longer. Grabbing the girl in both hands, bear and all, he ran for the window. It hadn't been opened, not with the heat on the metal frame, but it was the best way out. Lowering his head, Batman went through, rolling onto the pavement outside with the girl tucked away to protect her from the fall. When he finished the tumble, he stood the little girl up and checked to make certain that she was all right. Though she was coughing and still crying, besides a few burns she seemed to be unhurt.

The people outside had seen him come through the window. Some were cheering, some were silent in shock, and more than a few went tearing down the street the other way. Kamal couldn't help but smile to himself. Those were the ones who had the fear of the bat in them.

Leaving the little girl with the woman who had come up to grab her in her arms, presumably a mother or aunt, Batman turned to go back into the buildings to search for other survivors, when he heard an explosion from the other side of the street. A car had gone up in flames and exploded, and just behind it, a building on the other side of the street was suddenly aflame. Coming from the flaming building was a disturbing image, one that Batman had only seen in his archives. Stepping out was a man's figure, only it seemed as though his very body was made of blue flame. Through the flames, one could see the bones, but no organs. He turned, and saw batman, his jaw opening in a grin.

"Dr. Phosphorus. I didn't think you were around anymore." Quickly, Batman reached behind him, touching something on the back of his utility belt. He was suddenly enveloped in a cloud of white, a flame retardant covering the entire suit. Phosphorus said nothing in reply, reaching back with one hand and hurling a blue ball of flame at him. If not for the flame retardant, the ball would have incinerated him; as it was, he was merely burned, though most of the heat was dissipated through the suit. _Won't have to shave for a few days_, he thought as he felt the burned skin on his face.

Reaching down, he grabbed one of his batarangs, tossing two of them at the villain. They singed, but managed to hit and send him back a step. Again, he tossed a ball of flame, but this time Batman was ready; he rolled out of the way, allowing it to hit the already-aflame buildings behind him. Phosphorus began to run down the street, slinging flame on either side of him as he went. Pulling out a small device, he pushing in a switch and tossed it. It arced straight for Phosphorus, suddenly exploding into a large, heavy rubber stick. The stick hit him in the back of the neck, just below the skull, effectively knocking him unconscious. As he lay unconscious in the street, the pavement underneath him began to sizzle as he burned through it. Going over to the nearby fire hydrant, he opened it up, allowing the water to not only douse the flames of the fires nearby, but also put out the unconscious man.

Now lying in the street was a nude man, face down and unconscious. The sound of fire sirens was growing in the distance. He took a drape that had blown out into the street after one of the explosions and let it fall over the man- there _was_ at least one child who didn't need to see that.

As time ran out, he went through the buildings again, opening stuck doors and moving beams, allowing those who were still trapped inside to get out before he was out and away, on his way back to the cave for the night to update the Bat Computer with the information he had gathered.

On the west coast, there were still a couple hours of daylight left. Still walking through the forest, Olivia was glad to see the outline of Vancouver's high rises in the distance. "Finally, civilization again!" she sighed. She had not seen a city since leaving Seattle, and the states.

Suddenly, a thought hit her. She reached into her back pocket and pulled out her wallet. Inside were two credit cards, a bank card, about $20 in cash, and her driver's license. To get back into the states from Canada, she was going to need a passport, as was her father.

"What're you looking for?" Ollie asked.

"Passport," she said. "We're gonna need them to get back into the country. On a plane, anyway." Flipping through her wallet, she found a small piece of plastic that she had not had to use in two years, and smiled. "But I think I have an idea."

"Oh?"

Olivia made certain not to look at him, as she explained. She could feel his disapproving glare, though. "You remember a few years ago, when you found that pack of cigarettes in my room and I told you they had fallen out from the backpack when I lost it for a few hours at the park?"

"Yeah."

"I bought them, actually. I knew a guy who used to make us fake ID's, so we'd be able to pass as eighteen. I remember he moved up here a few years ago, and he might still be in the business."

"You used a fake ID?"

Olivia finally had to look up, wincing. "Yeah…"

Ollie shook his head. "I think there's a lot about you I don't know."

"Probably better that way, pop. Anyway, I just have to try and remember…" She was searching her memory. She knew that Max had holed up in Vancouver, and she was trying to remember what he did now. "I think…maybe he owns a flooring shop? No, not a flooring shop…maybe……maybe a framing shop. Yeah, I think that was it."

"Oh, a framing shop," Ollie said sarcastically. "It won't be difficult to find one in Vancouver."

"I know his name, too, pop. We just put both of them together. There _is_ such thing as a phone book."

"Just as I was about to suggest, let your fingers do the walking. Anything else I should know about while we're at it?" he asked.

Olivia shrugged. "Hey, I'm nineteen now, and all that's in the past."

"You're still my daughter, and you're still not too big for me to put over my knee."

Olivia stopped, looking her father in the face again. Of all the times… "Yeah. Try it."

"Is that a challenge?"

There was silence for a few minutes, as she sized him up. Looking at him, she finally came to the conclusion that he was serious, and shook her head. "It's getting late; we should be getting as far to town as we can. If we hurry, we may be able to hit the shop before it closes." Before Ollie could say anything else, she started to walk forward at a hurried pace. It was going to be interesting when he found out about the night in Vegas, especially since she wouldn't be able to divulge details she couldn't remember…

About an hour after sunset, they walked into town. The street lights had come on in the city, and cars were still going around in the district of North Vancouver- Olivia had recognized the honeycomb-shaped building of Capilano College.

"Over here," Ollie said, leading her to a phone booth nearby. He picked up the thick phone book and started to look through it. After nearly forty five minutes, Olivia finally recognized the name of the shop. It gave the address as 15th and Duchess, in West Vancouver. They had quite a hike ahead of them.

Ollie insisted on taking the lead, though he didn't quite know the city. Olivia had to correct him more than a couple times; she had been to Vancouver a couple times, usually on quick jaunts over the border to drink where the legal age was only 18 (ironically, with the fake ID's Max had made) but even she was unsure when it came to getting there. Still, she noted how jumpy her father was, and how his eyes darted around at every passing person. She would have called it paranoia, but after what had happened in Gotham at the bridge, she wondered if perhaps she had scared him into thinking that his daughter's time was more limited than he at first thought.

_Don't worry, pop,_ she wanted to say. _I can take care of myself. I did it while you were in the past. I won't let down my guard._

She was going to open her mouth to say something, when she saw him reach into his pocket and pull out a crumpled soft pack of cigarettes, pulling one out and lighting it. "Damn, that's good."

"You didn't tell me you had a pack," Olivia said. "Let me bum one."

"Forget it," he said. "It's a dirty habit."

"You know, I _am_ over 18. I'm old enough to make my own decisions," Olivia pointed out, folding her arms over her chest, tapping her fingertips on her arm restlessly with annoyance. _It's my own damn fault_, she reminded herself.

"Can you drink yet?"

"Only if I'm with someone rich." Seeing the look on his face, she couldn't help but continue. "You know, it's surprising how you don't get carded when you're clubbing with a casino's headliner."

"You went clubbing with Zatanna?" he asked, taking another deep drag off the cigarette. "Looks like I have another reason now to kick her ass. You and I are gonna have a nice long talk when all this is over."

Olivia said nothing, just continued walking. It was late by the time they had gotten there, but the store was still listed as being open for another half an hour. "It's a non smoking building," she told her father.

"I'll wait here," he said, lighting another off the one he was smoking, throwing down the half-finished one. Olivia glared at him as he leaned against a post. _Bastard,_ she thought as she entered the shop. Inside was plain, with a linoleum floor and plain white walls. The bland surroundings made the frames stand out brilliantly. Most of them had some sort of picture in them, either photographs or reproduced paintings, depending on the size. There were only a couple people roaming around the store, with one woman standing behind the counter. She had piercings up both ears and in her eyebrows, lips and nose. Her hair was cut short and dyed purple.

Olivia walked up. "Is Max in?"

The woman looked her over. "Who wants to know?"

"A friend from Seattle," she said.

"Hey, Max!" the woman shouted, loud enough to make Olivia cringe. "You got a friend from Seattle here."

Coming out of the back room was Max. Though it had only been three years, he looked ten years old- and heavier. He likewise had tattoos and piercing, and frowned when he saw her. "Olivia?" he said uncertainly. "Well, hell it is you. What brings you up here?"

Olivia smiled. 'Nice to see you too, Max," she said. "You mind if we talk in private?"

"C'mon back," he said, holding the curtain back as she came through to the back room. There were tables, saws, and lots of wood in the back, and some finished frames that hadn't been stained or painted. There was also a very sophisticated computer, with a very complicated looking computer. That was enough proof for her.

"So, you still in the old business?" she asked.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said.

"I'm not here to cause any trouble," she said. "In fact, I need your help, Max." He raised one eyebrow, sitting down. "I sorta had to skip the country real quick-like, and I left my passport back in Seattle. Now, I have to catch a plane to Las Vegas, but I can't get back into the States without a valid passport."

"Not a problem."

"Slight problem," Olivia interjected. "Our names might cause some red flags if we try to enter the country, so we need some names made up. Something tied to Colorado would work."

Max smiled. She knew he loved what he did; it looked like he hadn't done it in a while, either. "No problem, Lisa. You mentioned someone else. I'll need to take your photos for the passports."

"Yeah, lemme go get him, he's smoking out front," she said, getting up and heading through the store again, and outside. Ollie was leaning against a lamp post now, looking around. His head snapped around when the door opened, tossing the butt of his cigarette down on the street. "He's gotta take our pictures for the passport, follow me," she said. They both went back into the back room, where Max was setting up a white canvas as backdrop for the photos.

Max looked up, as Olivia introduced her father. He held out his hand, but Ollie just stood there, staring at him. _Great_, Olivia thought, _he's pissed because Max gave me a fake ID when I was 16._

They had their photos taken, and waited the few minutes for the passports to be finished. "I don't mean to bring this up in bad taste, you being a friend and all," Max said, "but I was wondering how the two of you are going to pay for this."

Olivia paused. "Well, I have a bank card. I can give it to you, you can take as much as you want, until the account is frozen or it's dried up."

"Or we could keep our mouths shut about this whole illegal operation you're running," Ollie growled, glaring right at him. Max looked away.

"Fair enough." He handed them both their passports with shaking hands.

"Pop, that's not how you make friends," Olivia said. "Or how you keep them."

"He's _your_ friend," he reminded her coldly as they left. "We have to get to the airport."

Hal had managed to catch a quick nap while he was waiting for clearance to go to the hospital, but he awoke sore and stiff from the uncomfortable chair he had been sleeping in. He checked his watch, saw that it was nearly 4 AM. Standing up to stretch, he found a bottle of water placed next to his chair, and realized just how thirsty he was.

Ashe finished the bottle off, Breckman approached. "Good, you're awake," he said. "We've been given clearance to get you to the hospital. If you'll follow me, Senator?"

"I don't think I need a hospital stay, General," Hal said.

"You need to be at least checked for internal injuries, Senator. The hospital will be safe, I can assure you of that. We're doing this in your best interests."

_I'm sure you are_, Hal thought. _Just checking to see if I've been tainted by a Meta human, I'm sure_. Still, he followed Breckman to his jeep and got in the back seat. It was a long, silent drive to the hospital on the outskirts of the city. He was admitted to a private room on the first floor, after having been X-rayed and checked for any other wounds. He was alone, and so he turned on the TV to see what if anything was going on. The heavy military presence worried him; marshal law was never a good answer, and who knew how long it would last?

The TV had basic cable, and he tuned to LNN. The main story was the terrorist attack on the Capitol. He watched as the bottom ticker was listing the damage, and that he was considered a casualty. There was also a debate going on between two people, one stating that Meta humans needed to be ruthlessly hunted until no more were left to cause such damage, the other arguing that it was that very mentality that caused them to rebel the way they were. Their debate was interjected by news that Hal was still alive and at the hospital, then went back to the argument. The screen then had a live feed from a helicopter nearby, just over FDR highway, watching the smoke still billowing from the building. Before his eyes, he watched as an explosion tore through it, destroying nearly a quarter of the building. Hal couldn't help but gaped open-mouthed. That is, until the TV went off.

Turning, he saw a woman putting the remote down on the table: Todd. He glared at her, not only for entering his room uninvited and unbeknownst to him, but also for seeing him in the horrible hospital gown he had been forced to wear.

"It is very fortunate that you managed to survive the attack on your office, Senator," Todd said. "And you seem to have been lucky with your injuries as well. The doctor tells me there is nothing serious to report. Amazing. I'd like to know how you did it."

"I don't remember," Hal told her. "I blacked out."

"Why don't we start with what you remember, from the beginning?" she asked.

Hal sighed. "Right. I was sitting in my office, when a man forced his way in."

"Can you describe him?"

"He was probably about 5'10", muscular, ridiculous red hair in a bowl cut. He barged into the office and started shooting energy from his hand. He didn't make any demands, but I must have blacked out. The next thing I remember, I woke up in Fairfax with a headache. I don't know what he wanted."

"How did you escape from him?" Todd asked.

"I don't know, honestly. I woke up and he was gone. I don't know what he wanted or why, but it seemed that either he got what he wanted or lost interest in me. Like I said, I blacked out, so I can't be too sure on what exactly happened." There was a brief silence, as Hal crossed his arms over his chest. "I think you owe me an apology."

"Oh?" She raised her eyebrows in question.

"You accused me of being a Meta human. Green Lantern, to be specific. I saw a news feed that said he was in LA while I was in DC. Looks like your intelligence was wrong, and I think you owe me an apology."

"So it may seem. For now," she said. "I'll have two guards posted outside your room, Senator, just in case this Meta human decides he has not lost interest in you. Good bye, Senator." Todd turned and walked out, leaving Hal fuming.

Only a few minutes later, as Hal had finished getting dressed, did the door to his room open. He turned to see a doctor on blood-stained scrubs enter and pick up his chart. "Another examination?" he asked wearily.

"Not exactly." The doctor went over and turned on the TV, then turned the volume up.

"Kamal?" He nodded. "How the hell did you get in here?"

"What, you mean how did I get into DC using an old JLA teleported and catch a ride in on the very jeep you were riding in? Or how did I get to the roof, pick the lock to the roof access door, sneak through the hospital to the incinerator, grab myself a pair of scrubs, find your room on the dispatch board at the nurses station, get the name of your attending physician, avoid the woman who was in here, and convince the two thugs outside that I was your AP?"

Hal couldn't help but smile. "It's good to see you, Kamal."

"I would say the same, but you look terrible."

"My own handiwork. I think I would be more worried about civil rights than about my physical well being," Hal said. "This martial law has got to end. I don't like the vague open-ended reason of an 'emergency police action'. We can't let ourselves descend into this kind of barbarism every time there's a problem. It makes us just as bad as the countries we fight wars against and place embargoes on."

"Ever working from the inside out, Jordan," Kamal said.

"It's the right way to do things, Kamal," Hal said sternly. So much for him being any better than Bruce. "Congress needs to convene as soon as possible. We can't-" The ringing of his room phone cut him off. He walked over and answered it.

"Why, Senator Jordan, it _is_ good to hear you are all in one piece, yes sir!"

Hal rolled his eyes. "Senator Wilcox," he said, trying to sound upbeat.

"It is good to hear you are not, in fact, dead!" Wilcox gushed. "I know you must be exhausted and want nothing more than a rest, and I know now is hardly the time for something like this, but I feel compelled to speak to you about your bill. After this latest, I think that we had best be changin' the wordin' on it. Make it stronger. I know that my friends would be much more favorable to the change."

"We will have to meet to discuss it further," Hal said. 'Unfortunately, I am not permitted into the city, which worries me."

"I would not worry about that, Senator," Wilcox said. "I heard straight from President Roberts that the military presence is a temporary inconvenience. Within the next 24 hours, they will be gone and DC will be open for business again. However, business may not be a good idea for someone in your shape. I tell you what, Senator; I am giving you a personal invite to come stay a few days at my ranch in Texas. It'll be a good time for you to relax and work in peace on that bill oh yers."

"Thank you, Senator Wilcox," Hal hissed through his teeth. "I'll think about your offer."

"Oh now, I insist, Senator, there's no need to be shy. You just think on it, and I will be seein' you tomorrow afternoon." He hung up, as did Hal.

"I can make certain he won't give you any trouble," Kamal said. "The fear of the bat is a powerful thing."

"There's no need for that," Hal said. "Frightening a man like Wilcox will only make him more of a bigot. Let me handle this my own way. I don't step into Gotham; don't get involved in DC."

Kamal shrugged. "Very well. Besides, I have to tell you the real reason I came here. I have discovered that Zatanna is the one stealing the clocks that belong to the Pentana of Time."

Hal blinked. "You're certain?"

"My sources are extremely reliable," he said. "And all the evidence supports that conclusion. She was in my head, messing with my memories. She made me think Dinah had gone to Jamaica; she was staying at the Sands. I must have stumbled across her while I was visiting her the other day."

Hal shook his head. He should have known better than to trust her even as far as he did, what with her capabilities. "She's the one stealing the pieces? To what end?"

"I can only guess she wants to change the past."

"She must think she's doing it to make the world better," Hal said. "She always thought that the ends justify the means, regardless of what those means were."

Kamal gave him an odd look. "You worked with her?"

"No more jokes, Wayne."

"Well, Olivia and Ollie are on their way to Las Vegas now, flying in from Vancouver. I have to meet them there; they won't be ready for Zatanna. Have fun getting past your guards."

Hal looked over at the door. "Yeah, well..." When he turned to finish his sentence, he found that Kamal had disappeared.

Sighing, he opened the door to the hall. The two men jumped up as he opened it fully. "I'm sorry, Senator, but you need to stay in your room."

"I don't recall being required to stay, with my wounds," he said. "I have every right to walk out of here if I wish."

The one man looked to the other, both of them pulling their guns. "Senator, get down."

"What happened?"

"Where is your doctor?"

Hal cursed to himself; Kamal had disappeared. Time to think fast. "I don't know, I thought he came out already," he lied. "I was asleep, and I just woke up, feeling better."

The one grabbed a radio. "This is Hutchinson. We have possible meta human activity at Mercy Hospital, requesting a containment team immediately." He then turned back to Hal. "It's not safe for you here, Senator. We'll escort you back to your home immediately, and make certain that the premises stay secure."

"That won't be necessary," Hal said. "I don't think they will find me there. It's well known that senators work in the Capitol Building, and the news networks told every American with a TV or radio that I was staying here. My home is not listed publicly."

"Very well," Hutchinson said reluctantly. "But we had best get you there, quickly."

They had to go all the way across Vancouver to get to the airport, which was located on its own island between Vancouver and the city of Richmond. Olivia and Ollie stood in line for only a half hour to purchase their tickets; there were very few people at the airport at that time of the morning. Finally, Olivia approached the counter. "Two tickets to Las Vegas, one way please."

The woman behind the counter nodded, clacking the keyboard with nails that were too long to be practical. "Your payment method?"

"American Express," Olivia said, her throat suddenly dry. Her heart was pounding; she knew it was a risk to use the credit card, since the transaction could be traced, but they had little choice in the matter; they needed to get to Las Vegas, and there was no other way they could afford it. It was going to cost an arm and a leg to get there, as it was. She handed over the card, forcing her hand to stay still. Fortunately, with her practice keeping a steady hand, her nerves weren't showing. She felt it, though.

The woman swiped the card, and was about to type something else into the computer when she paused, and frowned. She swiped the card again, and Olivia felt sweat beading on her forehead. "I'm sorry, there seems to be some trouble with your card."

Olivia turned to her father, who stood motionless a few paces behind her. _Oh, shit_. "Th-there must be some mistake. I have enough credit on that card."

"I'll try it again."

"Lisa. Lisa!" It took Olivia a moment to recognize Max's voice, and another before he realized that Lisa was her assumed identity. She turned to see him running up to her. "I'm sorry, I just realized you grabbed that wrong card off the table by mistake. That's the one I found on the street, remember?"

"Oh, yes!" Olivia covered, hoping her performance was convincing enough.

He turned to the woman at the counter. "Here, use this card."

She swiped the card and finished up purchasing the tickets. Max had disappeared off to the side, and was waiting for her near the security checkpoint line. She handed him back his card, and he took it, still staring at her. "What the hell kind of trouble did you get yourself into this time, Olivia?"

"You sure you want to know?"

"You've got me linked to you with that transaction, so I think I should know what I'm in for," he said.

"Well, there's this black ops group in Homeland Security in the states that's getting really pissy..."

Max held up his hand. "Okay, okay, I take it back, I _don't_ want to know. Just, tell me what kind of company I might be expecting."

"The dangerous kind," Olivia told him. "When they question you, tell them I made you help me. Tell them I threatened your girlfriend or something. But don't lie to cover my ass, Max. This is serious. It's more than just buying cigarettes underage. I've gotten into something big, and I'm sorry to have dragged you in. Just, watch yourself."

"Be careful out there," he said. He looked at Ollie, then turned and left. They got into line for the security checkpoint, and an hour later they were seated in the terminal, waiting the rest of the hour and a half it would take before boarding started. Olivia yawned; it had been over thirty hours since she had last slept.

"What I wouldn't do for a double mocha latte with whipped cream and a shot of caramel flavor," she said.

Ollie looked over at her. "Spoiled," he said. "Speaking of spoiled, what the hell were you doing in Las Vegas?"

Olivia sighed. "You remember that whole Talisman problem?" she asked. He nodded, not taking his eyes off her for a second. Great; an inquisition. She had always hated when he had done that when she was just becoming a teenager. Of course, she knew why; he had wanted to make sure she didn't so anything he had done at her age. "Well, the chick knocked me out cold. This trapper found me by the side of the road and took me in until I could get on my feet again, which fortunately was only a couple days, but anyway, Uncle Hal found me and took me to Vegas to find Kamal, who was visiting with Zatanna at the time."

"Yeah. Zatanna." His voice was ice cold. "What'd she do to you?"

"Nothing, pop," she insisted. "I showed up, she learned who I was, we talked out on the balcony then went out to have a good time. I can't remember most of it, granted, but I don't think you have any reason to be this angry."

By the time he had finished his story, she understood why he was. She shook her head. "No. Zatanna didn't do anything like that. You don't think she would have given me a perfect memory of the night if I hadn't. Trust me; I even remember the hangover."

"Hangover?" His fist clenched tighter.

Olivia was about to reply when the TV screen above her caught her eye. She gasped slightly as she saw the image of the Capitol Building in DC on fire. "Pop?"

He turned to regard the screen. "Looks like there's trouble."

"Uncle Hal…'

"He'll be fine." Just then, the ticker at the bottom reported to his death. "He's been dead before. Hal can take care of himself. We've gotta keep our priorities straight."

"And our priorities are?" Olivia asked.

"Find Zatanna. Kick her ass. Then we can find out what happened to Hal, if he hasn't resurfaced yet." Olivia nodded, though she couldn't keep her eyes off the screen. She watched it until it was time to board the plane. She was again nervous, especially when they hit turbulence over Oregon, but the plane managed to land at the airport safely a few hours later. Walking through, she saw various gift shops, fast food joints, and slots. She frowned.

"Okay, now where's the cab port?"

Olivia shrugged. "How should I know? I never came in by the airport before."

"You were never at the airport?" he asked, sounding surprised. _At least he's got some emotion in his voice this time,_ she thought.

"There are other ways to get to Las Vegas, you know, pop."

He shook his head, as they managed to find their way out to the main drive, and hail a cab. They made their way to the Mirage by dusk, the lights only just starting to show their flamboyant prime. "So, what's the plan?"

"Well, we find out when Zatanna has any of her performances."

Olivia looked up at the Marquis. "Looks like 7:00, 8:45, and 10:30."

Ollie nodded. "Now, we need to know how long each show is."

"Well, we can figure it out by the times," Olivia said. "They're an hour and forty five minutes apart. Say, maybe a half hour for downtime and reset, so I'd say an hour and fifteen minutes."

"I'd make it an hour," he said. "What time is it?"

"Six."

Ollie nodded, looking around. "Then I think we ought to get something to eat."

"Sounds good. I could go for a nice loaf of bread and a huge salad."

"How about 'Steaks for 3 bucks'?"

Olivia sighed; she knew there was no talking her father out of it. She shouldn't have said anything. "You have cash?"

"I have enough," he said. They crossed the street to the small restaurant and sat down. Their order was taken, and they sat waiting.

"So, you said Zatanna was a friend of mom's?" Olivia asked.

"Yeah, back in the good old days," he said.

"So, why are we looking in Zatanna's suite?"

"Because I think there might be a clue there as to where your mother has gone off to," he said. "You always have to ask so many questions?"

"When it comes to mom, yeah," Olivia growled back. "Besides, I saw her, while I was in Atlantis. She…well, she told me she doesn't want you coming around."

Ollie just waved his hand in dismissal. "She's upset right now," he said. "We'll settle this whole thing when we find her."

It was then that Olivia realized something, making her whole body twitch for a moment; how stupid could she have been not to see it before. "Of course, Zatanna will lead us to mom," she said. "I think mom's the one who wants the Pentana of Time."

Ollie raised one eyebrow. "What makes you think that, miss detective?" he asked.

Olivia glared. "I'm serious, pop," she said. "Mom went to Atlantis _before_ going to see Zatanna. To get the ability to speak again. Now, I know Zatanna has to speak her spells which are arcane, just like the Pentana. Now, she didn't have to; I'm sure Zatanna could just use telepathy of some shit like that. She _is_ a magician, after all. No, I think Zatanna is helping mom get the pieces, and that mom's the one who's gonna go back in time."

"That's shaky logic, Olivia," he said. "Not all arcanists have to speak to cast spells."

Olivia shrugged. "I guess we'll find out in forty five minutes, huh?"

"I guess we will."

The rest of the meal passed in silence, more or less, though Olivia enjoyed the feeling of being in the city again. It wasn't only because she only grew up in the city; she just enjoyed it. The lights, the movement, the many, many people all seemed to be more natural than nature, if such a thing could be. They paid the bill, then went back over to the Mirage, entering through the giant front doors. Immediately greeting them was a bright set of flashing lights, with a mechanical voice shouting "WINNER!" throughout the casino.

"What floor is she on?" Ollie asked.

"Floor 75," Olivia said. "But you need a keycard and a code to get there."

"No, we don't," he said, going up to the elevators. It was 7:15. They waited for the elevator to open, then stepped in. Someone tried to get on, but Ollie pushed them away violently. "This one's full," he growled, as the doors shut. Olivia glared at him, but said nothing. She knew it was the way it had to be; that didn't mean she had to like it. He hit the button for floor 75, then went down the row until it accepted his selection. Fortunately, floor 73 was the highest one they could get to.

"Move," he said. Olivia moved to the side of the car, as he reached up and popped open the top hatch for the elevator. "Give me a boost."

Olivia steepled her fingers together, as he stepped up into her palms and pulled himself up into the top. Getting situated, he reached down and lifted her easily up through the hatch. "Grab the cable and start climbing," he ordered.

"I think I just got demoted to Speedy status," she said to her father with a smile.

He tried to keep the grin off his face. It almost worked too; she could only see the corner of his lip twitch. "Just get moving."

Obediently, she began to climb the cabling as the elevator car began to move downwards. The reality that she could fall 73 floors to her death didn't quite kick in; she was too worried about finding her mother, finally. She wouldn't run out this time, Olivia promised herself. Even if she got angry, she wouldn't leave. Turning her back on her family was an egregious error, one never to be repeated again.

They managed to get up to the door for the 75th floor, where Olivia swung out to the small ledge and forced the doors open. They both moved into the hall, and down to the penthouse. It was exactly as Olivia had remembered. Ollie examined the door lock. "Give me a hair pin," he said.

Olivia gave him a look. "You can't be serious," she said. "Do I look like I have a hair pin?" He turned to glare at her. "Here," she said, lifting up her shirt just over her waist, pulling a small safety pin from the dozens that were circling her waist like a metal belt. "I have a safety pin."

"Why the hell do you have a safety pin?" he asked, then saw the collection. "Never mind," he said, taking it from her and working on the lock. It popped obediently after a few moments, and they both went inside. "Start looking for anything useful," he said. Olivia nodded, combing through the apartment. After a half hour, she had found little more than a few trinkets from her years as a member of the JLA, though she made certain to leave no evidence of her intrusion.

"Zatanna's show is wrapping up," she said, coming out from the bathroom. Ollie was leaning over the nearby table, rubbing over a paper pad with a pencil. "What's that?"

He tore the page off the pad and showed it to her. In negative, she read 'Room 1011 Sands'. "This is our next stop. Better clean things up."

"I was doing that all along," she said. "I'm not stupid, you know."

"Good, less time we have to waste," he said, heading out of the room and locking it again from the inside. Olivia followed, her heart pounding. Was that where her mother was staying? She had overheard something about the Sands when her father had called Kamal the day before. Trying hard not to think about the upcoming room invasion, she followed her father through the stairwell and out of the building, heading down the strip so quickly she almost had to run to keep up with him.

The private jet came into the Las Vegas airport just past sunset. Waiting out on the tarmac was a limo, the driver standing nearby. He opened to door as Kamal stepped in. "Good evening, sir," he said once he had taken the driver's seat. "Your reservation at the Luxor has been confirmed."

"Thank you, I'll need to check in as soon as possible."

"As you wish, sir."

The limo ride was short and pleasant, and he checked in to the hotel. Making certain he had his 'luggage', Kamal donned the cape and cowl and made his way across the rooftops to the Mirage. He rappelled down to Zatanna's balcony, placing a small bug on the window before making his way to the rooftop across the street. Lying down on his stomach, binoculars over his eyes, Batman waited.

His wait was not long; only twenty minutes later was Zatanna entering the room. She took off her hat and coat, tossing them onto the couch before picking up the phone. After a brief pause, he could hear her through the bug. "Dinah, it's Zatanna. Yes. Yes, it's almost ready. The last piece will be delivered tonight. I understand. Once this is done, though, the favor's over. I know. Good bye, Dinah." She hung up the phone and disappeared into the bathroom. Batman took the moment to spring up and make his way back to the balcony, landing silently. As he did, Zatanna had come out from her bathroom. Her hair had been pulled back tightly, and she wore the black jumpsuit and red cape of the thief.

Using the element of surprise, he grabbed a small gas pellet from his utility belt and rolled it into the room through a crack between the doors. The smoke quickly filled the room as he threw open the doors. Zatanna was coughing on the smoke, unable to speak; good. Still, she swung out, making him back up a step. Tipping over the table to block him from following, she threw open the door. Though he tied to lasso the door and close it again, he missed, and she ran out into the clear hall. Following after her, she turned and opened her mouth to speak.

It was then that he shot the small dark, hitting her in the chest. When she tried to speak, no words would come. She tried again, but the same result. "Now, you and I are going to have a little chat," Batman said. "Or, I am going to chat and you are going to listen."

Zatanna was not ready to concede defeat yet; she grabbed a nearby fire extinguisher and swung. Dodging out of the way, he tripped her, slamming his fist into her solar plexus on her way down. By the time she hit the floor, she was unconscious. He dragged her back into the room, using a towel to gag her, then bound her with Bat line.

With the magician neutralized, he pulled out his phone.

"What?"

Still not the response he expected. He wasn't used to that. "I know where your mother is," he said.

"So do we, Sands room 1011. We're on our way there right now."

_Good to know that they're together,_ Kamal thought. "I'll meet you there." He hung up, and went out to the balcony, again climbing up to the roof. Jumping from rooftop to rooftop, he made his way over to the Sands, once again rappelling down a Bat line to the tenth floor. He landed silently on the balcony, and was getting into position to strike, when he heard the door inside crash open.

"Mom, look out!" he heard Olivia say. There was movement, and suddenly, the girl was in the air, through the window and out over the balcony. Kamal would have been stunned, had he been any other man; however, his honed reflexes had the batarang around the balcony and him on the other end hurtling down towards the falling archer before he would even register the thought of a mother throwing her daughter from the tenth floor of a building. She was trying to reach out for the building, but she was a good six feet from it; her only hope now was to wait for him, and from her vantage point, she couldn't see him.

He grabbed her as she passed the second floor, swinging her down safely onto the ground. Just over him, he heard a horrid screech, and the sound of broken glass. Five floors had lost their windows, and the balcony that he was still attached to was terribly mangled. He could see the horror in Olivia's face, and knew what was going through her mind.

"Up! Now!" she shouted, pushing him aside as she grabbed the batline She was climbing up it with more speed than he had seen any normal human possess, even himself or his father; she was on a mission. He could have sworn that he could see her chest rising and falling haggardly, but that could have been from the effort she was putting into climbing. Through the skintight black suit, he could see her muscles straining to lift her.

Looking up past her, he saw Black Canary, in full costume, looking down at that. Olivia paused. "Mom, don't! Please!" Her pleads were ignored, as another horrid screech came from the device around her neck. The line disintegrated, though they were only two floors up. Olivia ran inside, though the screaming throngs of people trying to escape whatever was happening. He continued up the side of the building.

Once on the balcony, he looked inside. The entire floor had been devastated; the walls and doors peeled open as if from an explosion. He looked at the ground, searching for footprints, and found only one set. They were slight, most like Canary's, and he began to follow them, through the wreckage, to the stairwell.

As he threw the door open, he found Olivia on the other side. She paused in mid-stride, eyes going wide. "Where's my father?" she demanded.

"I don't know," Batman said, running past her, up the stairwell, following the footsteps. She was right behind him; then, right next to him, as she climbed through the center of the bars. Eventually, they both came to the rooftop access door, which had been blown open in the same fashion as the rest of the tenth floor. Coming out onto the rooftop, he saw Black Canary, standing with a chest covered in arcane runes under her left arm. In her right hand, hanging over the edge of the building, was the unconscious form of her husband, bleeding profusely.

"You're faced with a choice," she said through the metal box. "You can stop me, or you can stop Oliver Queen from falling to his death." She moved her arm downwards a fraction of an inch; it was in response to Olivia moving forward. The girl stopped immediately.

"Mom, please don't do this," she begged. Any bravado or bluster she had possessed was gone, just as it had disappeared when she had been in Atlantis. "Just stop this, it's crazy, you don't want to kill him, do you?"

"Olivia, don't try to stop me," she replied, though her voice was not nearly as compassionate. "I have to make things right. Do you really want an alcoholic father?"

"I don't want to ruin the fact that I have two loving parents," she said. "You can't promise me that I'll even be born if you change the time stream."

Canary didn't respond to that. "You have a choice."

Batman stepped forward, just one step. "Superman had a choice, too," he said, locking eyes with her. "He made the wrong one. Don't make the wrong choice, Canary. Put him down."

For a moment, her resolve seemed to waiver. She looked at him, then at Olivia, who was valiantly trying to hold back tears. Then, she took a step forward, dropping Ollie onto the rooftop and the chest next to her. Olivia ran forward, and was nearly to them when suddenly the air was filled with a horrid-smelling smoke. Sensing the danger, the suit reacted automatically, covering his mouth and nose with the oxygen mask. The two women were out cold. Batman turned to see where the smoke was coming from, and felt his mouth go dry.

Coming out from the fog was a tall, thin figure, dressed in green and black. "Grandfather," he said, backing up a step.

"I am very proud of you, Kamal," he said. "You have managed to secure for me the first four pieces of the Pentana of Time. For that, you have my thanks." Following him out of the fog was a large man, easily three times even his own size, and six others dressed as ninjas. The League of Assassins had come to back up their leader. Because of your excellent work, I am once again extending you my offer. Leave this foolish crusade of yours. Hang up the cowl and come with me, back to the League. We will welcome you again."

"I already made my choice, Grandfather", Kamal said.

"Then give me the chest, and we will be gone."

Kamal was about to refuse, but then he looked at the chest, and the three unconscious forms lying next to it. Even if he could wake them, only two were in any shape physically to fight, and he couldn't attest that they'd be mentally capable of it, not in their current emotional states. No, it was best not to risk their lives. He walked over to the chest, kneeling down. As he did, the chest blocking view of his left hand, he palmed a small tracer, attaching it underneath one of the hinges on the back. He walked forward, holding it out.

"Ubu," was all Ra's said. The large man came forward and picked up the chest as though it weighed nothing.

"What are you going to do once you get the entire Pentana of Time?" Kamal asked.

"I am going to use it to further my own plans," he said. With that, he turned and walked back into the smoke, which disappeared behind him. Once he was certain that the threat had passed, he went to Olivia and woke her gently.

She grabbed her head, squeezing her eyes closed. "I think I have another hangover," she said. "What happened?"

"Ra's Al Ghul was here," he said.

"Who the ghoul?"

"He took the clocks."

Olivia's eyes snapped open. "Oh, shit."

"Help me," Kamal said, going over and lifting Ollie. Olivia went to her mother, lifting her as well.

"Pop needs a hospital," she said. "He's hurt really bad."

"I have something better," Kamal said. Making their way across to the Mirage via the back alleys, avoiding the crowd that had gathered outside the Sands, the four of them were in Zatanna's suite again. She was still tied and gagged on her bed. Dinah had woken up, and was sitting in one of the chairs, staring at the ground in shame. Olivia had tried to talk to her, but she wouldn't reply, or even look up. Therefore, she went over to Zatanna. When the magician woke up, she started to struggle.

"Zatanna, I'm really sorry all of this happened, but we need your help," she said. "Someone named Ra's Al Ghul has the four clocks of the Pentana, and pop might die if you don't help him. Please." With that, she removed the gag. Zatanna looked at her for a moment.

"Flesym eerf," she said, and the lines disappeared. She got up, glaring once at Kamal as she went over to look at Ollie." She looked at him for a moment, before saying something else, too softly for Kamal to hear. "He's badly injured, but I think he'll be all right," she said. Kamal could see the relief flood over the girl. "You said someone has the other four pieces?"

"Yes, a very dangerous and cunning man," Kamal said. "My grandfather."

"Why didn't you stand up to him?" Zatanna demanded.

"Because the Queen family was unconscious. I could not risk all their lives. Instead, I put a tracer on the chest." he pulled from his utility belt a small screen, and turned it on. "Right now, it looks like he's taking it to the airport."

"I'll provide a distraction," Olivia volunteered immediately. "You sneak in and get the chest."

"Actually, I had a better idea. Ra's needs the last piece in order to complete the Pentana. I suggest we figure out what the last piece is and get there before he does."

"I already know the last piece," Zatanna said. "It's an aborigines dream clock."

"We could use some help," Kamal said, pulling out his cell phone.

"Uncle Hal?"

Hal picked up the phone almost immediately. "Kamal?"

"Yes. We have some bad news."

"Not as bad as house arrest. You left me in-"

"Hal, Ra's Al Ghul has four of the five pieces of the Pentana of Time," Kamal cut in. There was silence on the other end of the line. "How fast can you get over here?"

"I'll be there in an hour," he said. Kamal hung up.

"An hour," he relayed.

The hour was one of the most uncomfortable hours he had ever spent; Zatanna was angry at him, Olivia was afraid for her father's life still despite the magician's efforts, and Dinah refused to look at or speak to anyone. The hour passed in silence, until a man entered the room. He was dressed in yellow, with a helmet that hid most of his face, a large pointed star on his chest. His gloves and boots were also golden. "Who are you?" Olivia asked, pulling her bow and aiming. Her arm wasn't shaking, and she had him sighted dead on; she would fire if she needed to. _Odd,_ Kamal thought, _maternal instinct even for her parents._

"I am Polaris," he said.

Kamal recognized the voice. Hal. "Good, you're here," he said.

"Then, we don't have much time." Zatanna lifted her hand.


	4. Chapter 4 The Pentana of Time

Polaris saw the motion Zatanna had made, and was about to say something, when there was a sudden puff of smoke in the room. The magician had dropped her hand, though she had no signs of fear in her face. Olivia had just lowered her bow, and it came back up to threaten the intruder. Standing there when the smoke dissipated was a very short man, with short black hair, dressed in a tiny suit. "The water clock's been stolen!" he said, directly to Batman.

"I apologize for what I had done, but I thought it necessary," she said.

He turned, tiny face wrinkling in confusion. "You knocked me out?" Before Zatanna could reply, Polaris heard a sickening cough, and looked over. He had barely noticed before, but Ollie was lying there, beaten badly and now coughing up blood. She ran over to him, saying a few words as she touched his head. "He's worse off than I thought," she said.

"I thought you said he'd be okay?" Olivia demanded. Polaris put his hand on her shoulder. The muscles underneath were tight, and not just from having the bowstring pulled back still.

"He needs medical treatment."

Olivia opened her mouth to speak, but just shook her head angrily and turned away to the balcony. Hal watched after her, watched as she stopped in mid-stride, mouth gaping. "Oh, bloody hell." Just as she said it, there was a loud explosion that rocked the building. Hal turned to find Batman, but not so much to his surprise, he was gone. The little man was still there, however. He heard the doors to the balcony open, and he turned to see Olivia running out, climbing over the balcony railing.

"I've got it," the little man said.

"Thanks,-?"

"Allo." He went over to the railing and hopped over; already, Olivia had gotten down to the next balcony and was trying to get down yet another floor. Outside, Polaris could finally see the cause of the explosion and the panic that was now taking over the streets. A woman was standing in the middle of the strip, but she was no ordinary woman; she was taller than any of the hotels, and had already torn Bally's in half. Reaching inside, she was starting to drag handfuls of the building's interior outside, tossing it into the street. He noted a tiny puff of smoke, and saw Olivia down at the woman's feet.

Jumping out, Polaris flew over to the danger. A tiny arrow stuck into the woman's calf, but she didn't see Olivia; she saw him. Reaching back with the piece of hotel that she had in her hand, she swung out. Polaris went through the glass and through most of the building before slamming into the solid metal elevator shaft, and being tossed back out. He caught himself before he hit the ground, but he did note one important thing on his trip through the newly made club; there were still people _inside_. Looking down, he watched as those who had fallen out from the hotel were gliding gently to the ground, and noted Allo seeming to move them with his fingertips. He couldn't find Olivia.

Using the yellow energy, he made a large hand, grabbing the hotel, trying to wrest it from the woman's grip. She pulled back, then grinned. As she shrugged off the energy, she tossed the building back behind her, down the strip. Before he could move to catch it, he saw a giant hand coming towards him. Feeling slightly silly, he struggled to get out of her grip, before calling the topaz-colored energy to create sharp rays, similar to the rays protruding from the star on his chest. The spines cut deep into her hand, making her cry out before opening her hand enough for him to get away before drowning in her blood. As he pulled away, he saw the remains of the building out of the corner of his eye, floating out of the city and into the desert. That high up, he could still see nothing of Olivia.

Holding his arm out, Polaris willed the energy into a thin column, blasting her in the face with light. She turned for a moment and cried out, then recovered, bringing both of her hands together. Unable to get out of the way in time, Polaris was caught between them when there was a sudden flash of light. He once again summoned the spines, making her pull away, and he saw that he was now in the middle of the desert. Only the moon and stars gave any light, making the entire scene seem very eerie. The woman looked down, lifted her foot and slammed it down; Polaris assumed that she had found Allo. There was little he could do for the sorcerer now except neutralize the threat.

The fight between them quickly degenerated into what could only be described as a style of fist fighting; Polaris was letting loose blast after blast from the Qwardian ring, while the woman was batting him like a gnat that kept buzzing too close to the face. The battle raged on, as he felt his strength starting to dwindle. He knew, however, that he could not let this woman win; if she did, then the people of Las Vegas would have no one standing between them and destruction.

Suddenly, Polaris saw a shimmering next to him, and multiple copes of himself appeared in the night sky. He smiled grimly to himself; Allo must have regained consciousness. Though the attempt was valiant, the copies did little to help, as the woman made a grand sweeping gesture, causing Polaris to soar backwards, his helmet flying off to land in the sand. His flight finally ended in the sand, where he managed to get up, ignoring the pain that seemed to course through his entire body. He could see only out of one eye, the other having been swollen shut, his entire body either bruised or bloody. Still, he forced himself to get up and head back. As he made it back, he saw a brilliant purple light coming from the ground. The woman fell backwards, and began to shrink down to her normal size. Polaris landed next to Allo, who looked just as battered as he was.

"We have to get back to the city," Polaris said. Allo nodded, touched his wrist, and there was suddenly a brilliant flash of light and smoke.

With her arrows doing little, Olivia felt the best course of action was to get those still trapped in the casino out of it. The ones who could create giant constructs out of light and made something out of nothing could handle the giant woman; she remembered that there were still people that needed rescuing, and she didn't need any special superpowers to do just that. Running inside, she began to wade through the damage and the people trying to get out. The elevators were gone, the stairs were torn, and those that were left weren't exactly in one piece. There were injured people everywhere, sparks flying from the hundreds of damaged slot machines that still had power. Making her way nimbly through the mess, she began to carry out the wounded, laying them on the sidewalk carefully before going in to find more.

As she began to work her way up through the floors, she heard sirens approaching. Knowing that she couldn't be around when they showed up- unless of course, she _wanted_ to have a nice, friendly conversation with Agent Todd in a dark room- she went into one more room, checking to see if it was clear. The room itself was large, especially for only being on the 6th floor of the hotel. She found one man lying face down, seemingly dead. She gingerly reached out to turn him over, and found that half of his face was gone. Despite that, there was no blood. Instead, there was a matrix of wires and metal, none of which was sparking; no power was left. She frowned at it, picking up the android as she started to make her way to the back of the building. Below her, through the gaps, she could see that the police and fire crews had arrived, and were starting to put out the electrical fires on the ground floor and tending to the injured. Just behind the line of police and fire trucks was a convoy of ambulances.

Making her way carefully down to the street, Olivia made her way unseen through the alleys and finally up to Zatanna's suite. When she got there, she saw an envelope taped to the door. Inside was a rolled up piece of parchment.

'_We_ _had to take your father for emergency surgery. Stay here and wait for me_.'

Olivia crumpled the paper in her hand and opened the door, dropping the android on the couch. She locked the door behind her and threw down the parchment, searching through the android's pockets. Eventually, she found a wallet with a few credit cards, some cash, and a Nevada driver's license identifying the man as one Brent Stewart. She frowned again at the circuitry inside, and decided to leave that particular problem for later. Instead, she took the driver's license and went to the computer, looking up anything she could find on him.

Behind her, she heard a soft sound and felt a gust of air, though she knew for a fact that the windows were all closed. Looking at the glass over the screen to see a reflection, she saw wisps of smoke, and Allo was suddenly standing in the center of the room, with Polaris. Both of them looked badly beaten.

"Damn," she said, turning around. "What happened to you two?"

"I don't know if you noticed the giant woman rampaging along the strip," Hal said sarcastically. It was then that she noticed his helmet was missing.

"I did," Olivia said. "I just figured the two of you would be better off handling her. Someone had to get in there and protect the bystanders."

"Hey, I got half of them," Allo argued.

"Oh, yeah?" Olivia challenged, leaning over the back of the chair. "Where are they?"

"In the desert, just outside the city."

"Oh. Don't you think they'll need medical attention, or do you plan on having the wounded walk back?" She turned away, looking at the computer screen.

"Good idea."

She felt a hand on her shoulder, and looked up. "Olivia."

"Zatanna took pop for emergency surgery," she said, looking back down. Couldn't they leave her alone? She had something to do, something to take her mind off of what had happened to her family. "Besides, the two of you have to get out of here. The MCC is going to be descending on this place any minute now, and if you're found..."

"Then you have to come with us," Hal said.

Olivia shook her head, then pointed to the crumpled parchment on the ground. "Zatanna told me to stay here," she said. "I'm not going anywhere until she gets back. Besides, I've had it running from Todd. If she shows up, I'm going to give her a piece of my mind."

"That isn't a good idea, Olivia. She has resources. Lots of resources."

"So do I," she growled. "Now, go. Before you're caught."

"I do have to get back to Washington. I'll get in touch with you tomorrow." He patted her shoulder once more, then turned to the balcony door, opening it and flying off into the night air. The draft that came in made her look outside, where she saw a very large neon sign that was sparkling with magic. It read OTHER HALF OF BUILDING THIS WAY. Olivia rolled her eyes and turned around. Allo was still standing there.

"Why the hell haven't you left yet?" she demanded. _Please, God, make him leave. I just need to be alone!_

Allo shrugged. "I have no place else to be, and besides, I don't think Polaris would have wanted me to leave you here all by yourself!"

"Don't pretend to know my uncle," she said.

"I have to help the people down there. I have to rebuild the city."

"No, you don't."

"But, I feel bad if I don't help them."

"Tough. Deal with it." She wasn't in the mood for his antics, not now. She remembered him when he had first shown up, following Superman, looking like a miniature version of his hero. He had been annoying then, and he was on her last nerve now.

"I don't like to sit around when people need my help," he sulked.

Olivia slammed her fist on the table. "Will you shut the hell up, or do I have to beat you into silence!"

"I'm sorry," Allo muttered, as Olivia went back to her research. "You know, if you're in trouble, you shouldn't be here."

"I have to stay here until I hear news about my father," she replied. "And you should be leaving, shouldn't you?"

"I don't have anywhere else to go."

"Bullshit." She knew for a fact he had plenty of other places he could be; he knew where Wayne Manor was, he had been to DC at least one before, and to Seattle, and she wouldn't have minded at that moment if he had decided to teleport himself to the moon, just as long as he'd shut up. But she knew that wouldn't happen, either.

"What's this?" Allo asked.

_I swear, I am never going to have kids if they act like this_. "It's an android I found in Bally's," she replied, taking no measures to hide the impatience in her voice. "I found him on the sixth floor, but from what I'm getting here, it's saying he's Brent Stewart, Lieutenant Governor of Nevada." She began to print out the information she had gathered on the small inkjet that sat under the desk, and went over to the android. Already, Allo had his hand on it, eyes closed. She waited for a moment, watching him, until he opened his eyes again.

"I saw an office with windows and a blue rug. It was foggy, as if he was still in wrapping."

Olivia shook her head. "Thanks," she bit out sarcastically. "That decreases the number of places we have to search for eight billion to three hundred million."

Allo looked hurt. "I'm only trying to help."

"You can help by telling me where the hell Zatanna took my father," she bit out, turning to go back to the balcony.

There was only a moment of silence. "Well, he isn't in my range to say."

Olivia frowned, turning. That was new. "You mean, you can look for him? What's your range?"

"About a thousand miles."

"She took him out of the country." Olivia began to pace again, her research all but forgotten. Where would Zatanna have gone? No, her statement wasn't entirely true; he could have been on the east coast, anywhere past the Mississippi. Hell, he could be in India, for all she knew. Even despite the mystery lying on the couch, she couldn't get her mind off of her family. _Doesn't do any good to worry about it. Zatanna will come back soon, and then I can decide what do from there. For now, I want to see what else might be up with this android._

Thankfully, Allo had gone silent. She continued to comb for information, though she felt her eyelids growing heavy and her fingers getting clumsy as they moved across the keyboard.

_The Yellow Rose was exactly as he had remembered it, down to the stains on the table. Across from him was Senator Wilcox, smiling at him from under the ten-gallon hat he wore. Hal picked up one of the green tortilla chips on the table and took a bite; there was no taste, thankfully. To his left was Einstein, and to the right, the Pope. The former was arguing that Meta humans were unnatural creations, while the Pope argued that all of God's creatures deserved to live their lives. Hal listened in, though oddly enough, Wilcox was silent. He watched as an empty glass was placed down next to him, and Hal looked over at the server. The first thing he noted was the green glove overtop of the hand, and the tight white sleeve that went up to his face, which was covered with a green hood. Hal pulled back, as the glowing white eyes bored into him._

_"Your time was not yet up, Hal Jordan," he said, his voice echoing through his mind. "Your penance has not yet been completed."_

Hal jerked as he woke up, his hand slamming into the backboard of his bed. The noise startled him even more. Glancing over at the alarm clock on the side table, he saw that it was near to seven AM. Turning off the alarm before it could go off, Hal got up and stumbled into the bathroom. Turning on the light, he ran the cold water in the sink, splashing it up into his face. Looking at himself in the mirror, Hal noted the bags under his bloodshot eyes, his skin seeming quite pale. Before his eyes, his skin turned from pale to white, his visage suddenly altering to that of the Spectre. He jerked back again, the false reflection mimicking his every move.

Turning away from the mirror, Hal went back into his bedroom to change; it was probably all the better that he didn't see the ethereal hand reach out of the mirror after him. In a few minutes, he had gotten himself something to eat, a large mug of coffee, and was in his car on the way into DC. Route 66, as always, was mobbed. The traffic crept along slowly, but from what he could see, there was nothing unusual to the morning rush hour pace. In front of him was a small cooper, with Maryland plates. Just for something else to look at, Hal glanced in the rearview mirror to see a bronco behind him, the man at the wheel staring at his car's tail lights.

Checking the clock, Hal shook his head; it was already 8:45, and he doubted he'd be getting to his office within the next fifteen minutes. Pulling out his cell phone, he dialed Claudia.

"Hello?"

"Claudia, it's Hal."

"Ah. Hello, Senator," she said. "I'm sorry, I'm stuck in traffic at the moment."

"So am I," he said. "I probably won't be in until after ten, with the backup on 66."

"Ah. Yes."

"Listen, Claudia. You'll probably get to the office before I do, so I need you to get something together for me. I want to have a press conference today, get some publicity for the new bill. I want all the major news networks there, and the papers. Make it for one O'clock."

"Yes, Senator." She hung up, and Hal put his cell phone away. Looking into the rearview mirror again, he noted the driver of the bronco was gone; in his place was, once again, the Spectre. Hal felt his heart jump, turning around to look for himself. Turning quickly, Hal saw nothing but the same man, still staring at his tail lights.

_Looks like I could use a rest_, Hal thought to himself. _Now I'm starting to see things. Yes, just seeing things; I'll need to start getting more sleep and relying less on the coffee._

Allo awoke just after local dawn. He looked over at the large clock that hung on the wall of the suite, and saw that it was just after 8:00. He yawned, stretching as he rolled off the couch and onto his feet. Looking over at the desk, he saw Olivia was still there, though her head was lying on her arm as she slept next to the computer. The android was still lying on the floor, where she had last put it, face-down.

Not wanting to disturb her, Allo went over and looked at the papers she had gathered, hovering next to the chair. Most of what she had found, he didn't really understand, and not only because he was unfamiliar with her world; the papers were in complete chaos, thrown together without cohesion. She even had some of the effects from his wallet out in between them. _She'd want to have all of this organized. She would have done it herself, she just fell asleep._

He took the papers and put them on the ground next to the android sorting them into a nice, neat little pile before looking up again. _She'd want to sleep in a bed, too._ He put one hand out, lifting her from the chair, but just as he did, she stirred, and opened her eyes.

"Must've fallen asleep," she muttered, rubbing a hand over her face.

"You're really tired," Allo said. "You should go get some sleep."

"I don't need it," she replied, as she looked at the screen in front of her. "This is really disturbing."

"You can figure it out after you've slept," Allo said again, hoping she would see reason. Not that she ever had anyway, but she hadn't hurt him yet (though she did constantly call him names, but from what he had seen of her, she did that to everyone).

"I just need some coffee," she said, finally getting up out of the chair and going over to the coffee pot next to the door. "Has Zatanna been back yet? Did you hear anything about my father?"

Allo shook his head sadly, watching as her shoulders sagged with his response. "No, not yet. I was just looking over the notes you found. Very interesting."

Olivia looked over at the table, then down to the android. "You know, I really hate it when people touch my stuff," she said. "Not to mention, I wasn't done with that."

"Sorry."

She sighed as the coffee pot began to hiss as it finished brewing. She poured the black liquid into a small mug and held it in both her hands. "It's very strange," she said. "Why would anyone want to put an android in office?"

"Maybe something happened to the real one. Maybe he was kidnapped."

"Or maybe the political party wants someone that they can manipulate. People can make deals, but they'll break them when a better one comes along. No, a robot's programmed to accept orders, no matter what those orders are. It's some sort of conspiracy to take over the state, but why Nevada?" She was pacing again, sipping from her mug. "I know it has Las Vegas, but other than that, it's a big chunk of desert. Is it a testing ground? Are they going to try putting robots into offices for California and New York and Massachusetts?"

Allo watched as her brow furrowed. "I wish I could help."

"I know," she growled. "You always want to help, but sometimes, take it from me; the situation is too big. Take yesterday, for example. I couldn't take that behemoth bitch on, so I helped the way I knew how; by getting the wounded out of there. Sometimes you have to forget about the glory and do a little crowd control. The people get forgotten too often anymore. Especially when we're all afraid."

"Afraid of what?" Allo asked, hopping up onto the couch again. He wanted to keep her talking; maybe it would make her comfortable enough to tell him what was _really_ wrong, the real reason her forehead was wrinkled and she staved off sleep.

Instead, she retreated back inside her shell of anger and bravado. "Afraid of us, or hadn't you noticed that the MCC seems to be stalking me like a damn rabbit? Uncle Hal, too. He's gotta have it the worst; not only is he being hunted, but he's a senator. I'm sure the politicking that's involved in that is giving him an ulcer."

"I think he'll be okay," Allo said. "What about you?"

"What about me?" Olivia demanded, glaring at him.

"You should really get some sleep."

"Forget it. I'm not sleeping until I find out why they had this robot built and why it was in Bally's, and how my father is. I wish I knew where they'd gone off to."

"Maybe Atlantis?"

"Atlantis? How the hell do you know about Atlantis?"

Allo shrugged. "I listened in to Batman talking."

Olivia gave him a cold gaze, and took another sip of her coffee. "Yeah, I suppose it's a possibility. I just wish I had a way to find out for certain. I left the JLA communicator back home in Seattle, so-"

Allo didn't give her a chance to finish her sentence. _Finally, I can help her and then maybe she'll trust me!_ He grabbed her sleeve and snapped his fingers, as smoke billowed up around them. In the span of heartbeats, they were suddenly standing in the house that he had first found his hero in. The entire place had been torn apart, as furniture and personal effects lay everywhere.

"What the hell did you do that for?" Olivia demanded, turning to him. "We were supposed to stay in Las Vegas!"

"I can always get us back," he said, somewhat hurt. Didn't she appreciate anything that was done to help?

"Good, get yourself back, then," she said. "If Zatanna arrives, then let me know what's going on."

"I think it'd be best if I stayed here until you find what you wanted. Then we'll go back together."

She paused, looking at him for a long moment. "Fine," she said, turning to go to the back of the house. "But you wait up here, and don't touch anything!" He watched as she disappeared through a doorway. He heard another door open, and her footsteps faded.

Idly curious, Allo looked at the house, squinting. He saw wires through the walls, wires everywhere. Not only did they lead to the sockets and switches, but they also led to a very sophisticated-looking box hidden in the wall, branching out to tiny cameras and sensors located all over the house. He heard footsteps approaching, and saw Olivia coming back out to where he was. Her face was set like stone, and he could tell she was quite angry.

"Go back to Zatanna's," she ordered.

"I don't want to leave you alone here-"

"Listen up, asshole!" she shouted. "Someone came back and trashed my basement, the basement they had left alone up until now. They stole the communicator. Now, I have something I have to do. No one's gonna like it, but I have no choice anymore. Get back to Zatanna's, make sure Kamal knows where I was, make sure Uncle Hal knows, and most importantly, make sure my father's all right!"

"I can't leave you alone," he protested.

"Listen up, squirt, you don't seem to understand what kind of trust I'm placing in you," she said. "I wasn't about to leave Zatanna's because of pop. Now that I'm not going back, don't you think I'm putting a lot of trust in you to let me know if he's going to be all right?"

Allo knew that he wasn't going to be able to convince her otherwise; though he hadn't known her for very long, from what the others said, she was stubborn when she had her mind made up. "Very well," he said, snapping his fingers. He was suddenly on the roof, looking down into the house. Though he couldn't hear, he could watch her as she picked up the phone, pulling a small business card from her pocket. The conversation lasted a few minutes, until she hung up the phone and went into the room that had full bay doors to the outside. There, she got onto a motorcycle and began to drive off north. Bending the light around himself, he flew invisible to the naked eye behind her, as she weaved in and out of the cars on the street recklessly. Finally, she arrived at the airport, and went inside. Allo stood near her as she waited impatiently in line.

Oddly enough, he found that she was saying just as much without words as she had at the house. She was impatient, shifting her weight from foot to foot, playing with the cuff of her patterned over shirt when she had it on, playing with the sleeves when she had it tied around her waist. Her eyes were oddly shifting, showing a quiet fear in them.

_No wonder she wanted me to leave,_ Allo thought to himself. _She doesn't like people seeing her afraid. That explains why she's always so mean to me! But, what is she afraid of? She did want me to go back and find out about her father, but I don't think that's what has her afraid. Something else is there. Maybe something about the phone call. Maybe someone needs her help! I should help, too, if I can._

He hovered near her, until she got to the front counter. "One ticket to Detroit, one way." She pulled out her wallet and handed the cashier two thin pieces of plastic. When one was handed back, she replaced it with another.

"I'm sorry, it seems that your cards are not valid."

Olivia was sweating slightly, as she frowned. "I'm going to have to talk to my financial institute," she said. "Those cards are brand new. I'm sorry to have wasted your time." With that, she turned away.

_Financial difficulty?_ He watched as she went up to a pay phone. _I can help with money!_ Shifting himself into the payphone, he transformed it into one of the machines he had seen while in Las Vegas, and began to deposit the coins he had seen into the small trough at the bottom. Instead of picking up the coins as he expected, Olivia turned away and walked down the aisle.

"Allo," she growled. "What the hell are you doing here, I thought I told you to get back to Las Vegas!"

"I couldn't let you go all by yourself," he said. "I just wanted to help!"

"Yeah, that's what you keep saying," she muttered. "Right now, I've gotta get a hold of Todd and figure out how she expects me to get to Detroit when she's frozen my funds."

"That's no problem!" He snapped his fingers, and instantaneously, they were standing on a small street in downtown Detroit, near to the amusement park.

Olivia rolled her eyes. "Why doesn't it surprise me that you'd pull something like this?" she asked rhetorically. "Now, I have the problem of getting a room here, and Todd's going to be damn suspicious how I got from Seattle to Detroit in an hour."

Allo frowned, and was about to say something when she turned and started to walk away. He followed after her, until she got to a payphone. Again, she pulled out the small card, which he finally got a good look at. It was more or less plain, printed on a gray paper. The writing was in silver, and had the letters MCC written in a diamond, and a series of numbers below it. _She's going to call the MCC? She wanted us out of Las Vegas because she didn't want us to be caught by them! What is she planning on doing?_

"Yeah, well, I got some help," he heard Olivia say. "That's the problem. I need someplace to hole up, and I don't think the Detroit police are gonna like me plopping down on the sidewalk. Well, how _very generous _of you. Yeah, about that, where exactly do you want to meet? Museum of Art? In Detroit? All right, fine. Twenty four hours, got it. Wouldn't miss it for the world." She hung up the phone and turned around, to see Allo staring at her.

"You're going to meet with the MCC?" he asked.

"You're damn straight." She leveled a finger at him angrily "And _you_ are not going to get involved."

"But, that means you go alone."

"Damn straight."

"But, you can't!" he argued. "It's too dangerous. What if something happens to you?"

She turned away, walking down the street, "Oh, I expect it to," she said. "But you being there isn't going to help. You stay out of it, and you stay quiet."

"And what if they try to harm you?" he asked. Before she had a chance to answer, there was a sudden bright light. Looking over, he saw a hand reach out, grab Olivia, and pull her through. He followed closely after, his heart pounding as he wondered what danger he was getting himself into.

By one PM, the steps of the damaged Capitol were filled with people from all of the major papers and news networks. Hal smiled to himself; the publicity was gong to be great, especially coming from the senator everyone had thought dead. Exactly as he wanted it.

Claudia announced him to the press, and he stepped up behind the podium that had been set up on the steps. Behind him, the Capitol showed the damage it had sustained only a couple days ago. Still, with all of that damage, there had been no fatalities, something unheard of in this day and age. Perhaps twenty five years ago, it would have been expected. It was time to get the world back to that time.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I come to speak to you, to all of you, about the events of the past few days. Yes, it is true that I was attacked by a Meta-human. However, I feel that the attempt would have been prevented had we allowed those whose intentions are noble to act as they had in the past. I may be dating myself, but I remember when such catastrophes as that behind me had no casualties. It was the norm, not the exception as this is." He again gestured behind him. "We have it in our power to change that. All we have to do is lift these bans on the Meta-humans, to allow them to protect us from their super powered nemeses as we have in the past. It is important that we take a stand now, and that we make our voice heard; we will no longer tolerate this injustice in our society. Please, speak to your elected representatives and make certain that they know your stand in this matter." Hal silently took a deep breath, as he said, "Now, I'll take any questions?"

The questioning was fast and furious, mostly surrounding the people's fears of the Meta-humans and gauging his own reactions to them. Finally, he stepped down from the makeshift podium and made his way through the press and into his car. Claudia drove him over to the temporary senate offices, where most of his work was currently sitting in boxes marked in Claudia's precise yet flowing handwriting. He sat down, sighing as he did. His part was done; it was up to the press to decide what spin they would put on his words. He could guess which stance some of them would take, though some never made a real clear stance on whether they were liberal or conservative networks or papers. As he sat down, he looked over at the twelve files that were sitting on his desk. He was looking for those who he could hope to garner support for his bill with. _And any reason I could hope for to avoid having to go to Texas_. After a half hour of cursory scanning, he had put aside a half dozen names. They were senators who had shown some tepid support of his ideas, and would be the ones who would most likely support him if he put a little pressure on them.

"Claudia?" Hal called through the open door.

She looked around the corner. "Yes, Senator?"

"If you would, I'd like you to call Senator Hutchinson. Set up a meeting between us to discuss the bill."

"Yes, Senator." He could hear her speaking quietly a few moments later, and he went back to paying attention to his own work. He was again working on the bill itself, trying to smooth out the language. "Senator, I have a meeting for you and Senator Hutchinson on Thursday at the White Elephant," Claudia told him.

"Thank you." As soon as he finished the sentence, there was a brilliant light. It coalesced itself into a doorway, and from it came a woman in black and white. Zatanna. "What are you doing here?"

"We need to find the last piece of the Pentana," she said. "There isn't much time. You're the last one."

Hal sighed and rolled his eyes, getting up and going through the doorway.

It was rather early when Kamal heard his phone beep cheerfully, letting him know he had a text message. Having just got back to the manor a half hour before, he had already had three cups of coffee and eaten. Looking down at the face of his cell phone, he recognized the number of the cell phone he had left for Olivia. Opening it, he read the message she had sent.

_I had an emergency, I need you to get to Zatanna's and find out what's happening with my father. It'll be worth your while: I left you a little present on the couch. I figured you'd be able to find out more about it than I could._

Kamal frowned as he closed the phone. "Minshi, have the plane readied. I need to go back to Las Vegas."

"Very good, Master Wayne," she said, as she cleared his plates away.

A few hours later, he was back at Zatanna's, having let himself in. Landing at the airport had been tricky, as most of the flights had been cancelled and were being diverted to other cities due to the cleanup effort on the strip, but he succeeded, and was kneeling down next to the android that he had found lying on the floor in front of the couch. He also found that the couch's pillows were moved, the chair at the computer had been moved, and a few drops of coffee had been spilled onto the table. It looked like she had stayed the night, but there was no evidence of her leaving by the door, or climbing down from the balcony. It wasn't much of his concern; if she had managed to get the message to him, then she was all right. More and more, he was getting a disturbing feeling being around her. It wasn't just that she didn't like working as part of a team, a trait they both shared; no, there was something else there, something more….if not exactly sinister, then something like it. He was starting to get the distinct sense that he couldn't trust her, and it started when she had run up onto the roof with him the night before.

Sitting next to the android was a stack of papers, identification and personal information that identified him as Brent Stewart. _At least she's learned how to do her homework_ he thought. He quickly pulled his laptop and a few wires out of his briefcase. Carefully looking over the android, he managed to find a place to link it to the computer, and began to search the hard drive. After a few moments, he found the main memory storage, where the information about his identity and his current activities had been held. Along with that was an encrypted area. With only his laptop, it wouldn't be possible for him to crack into the encryption there; however, it would be simple when he returned home to Gotham. He copied the drive that he had access to, for further investigation.

As he closed the laptop and placed it back in his briefcase, he noted a flash of light that strengthened his shadow against the wall. Spinning, he saw Zatanna standing in front of him, looking somewhat tired. "Good to see you again."

She spun. "You're not the one I expected to find here."

"Olivia asked me to wait for you," he said. "And to look over that." He gestured to the android on the ground. Zatanna only glanced at it.

"I was hoping to keep her out of trouble."

"Good luck with that."

She almost cracked a grin. Almost. "I found the last piece of the Pentana," she said. "We have to secure it immediately." With a wave of her hand and another backwards sentence, a light appeared, that soon coalesced into a doorway. She reached into it halfway, leaving only one fishnet-clad leg on her side of the portal. Through it first came Olivia, then Allo, and finally, Hal. By then, he was in the cowl, standing near the door.

"What the hell?" Olivia demanded. For once, she actually looked truly angry, not just blustering. "Did you happen to think that I was in Detroit for a reason!"

"It can wait," Zatanna said. "We have to get the last piece of the Pentana of Time."

"We better be back by tomorrow morning," she grumbled. "I've got a meeting."

"With who?" Zatanna asked, as the girl pulled out a pack of cigarettes, lighting one and taking a deep drag off of it.

"With Agent Todd!" Batman had not expected the information to come from Allo. Though Zatanna looked at him, both his and Hal's eyes were on Olivia. She looked up.

"What?" she asked.

"Todd?" Hal questioned, as he looked down at his hand. In a moment, he was dressed as Polaris again, helmet and all.

"I have my reasons," she said around the cigarette. "I don't recall it being any of your business."

"We don't have time for this," Zatanna said, as she made a gesture and said a word. Immediately, they found themselves in the middle of a hot, dry desert. On all sides of them was a rolling brown wasteland of sand and dry brush, but in front of them was a very large rock. On the rock was an inscription, written in an old language.

"This where the Pentana's being hidden?" Olivia asked.

"I believe it is. At least, that's how the inscription makes it sound."

Batman watched as Polaris lifted the rock, placing it down next to the entrance. He then went over and started down the ladder into the dark tunnel. Olivia was standing just over it, in clothing he had never seen her in before: a green sleeveless tunic and shoulder-high green, tipless leather gloves, green tights and knee-high boots. She was the next one to go down, once Polaris had said the area was clear. He was the last, and he quickly melded into the shadows, moving ahead of the rest of them.

"I sense a great deal of magic in this place," he heard Zatanna say. "Yes, I believe the last clock is held here."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Olivia asked. Her voice wasn't muffled; she must have gotten rid of the cigarette. He didn't wait any longer, kept going down the cave. Everything was dark, save for the light that came from Polaris. He was far enough down the cave that the light was negligible, and he relied on touch and sound, moving swiftly through the tunnel. Coming to a large antechamber, there were five halls.

Batman looked at all of them, and noted that there were etchings on the right hand side of each door. Looking at each, he noted that they were crude images of the clocks that made up the Pentana of Time. Choosing the hall with the unfamiliar rune on it, he started down that hall. Behind him, he could hear the rest of the party coming closer, and he moved into a small hollow in the wall. It wasn't long before the others found him, Polaris having tracked him using his ring.

"It's a dead end," Batman said.

Allo frowned. "No, it isn't," he said. He walked straight for the wall-

-and disappeared through it. The four of them followed after him, coming to another long, dark hall, and finally to a large antechamber. It was easily twice the size of the cavern that he had found the five tunnels in, and was mostly empty except for a raised mound of earth in the center. Sitting on it was a box, roughly the size of a coffin, covered in magical runes.

Batman took one step forward, and saw a blue of motion out of the corner of his eye. He turned to see Ra's Al Ghul standing there, Ubu behind him, and three dozen assassins waiting. A dozen of them had pulled back on bows, and fired. Diving back towards the small hall, Batman shouted, "Duck!"

The others were too slow. One arrow each pierced Allo, Polaris and Olivia, and three hit Zatanna. She dropped unconscious, as the others reached for their wounds, pulling the shafts from their bodies. Batman caught the slight color tint on an arrowhead that Allo pulled from him; poison. He reacted just as quickly, rolling in three smoke pellets to obscure the assassins' vision, and charged in. He was heading straight for Ubu.

He managed to find him in the smoke, as the assassins began to move through it, heading for the other three heroes waiting outside it. He struck out, but hit Ubu in the center of mass, doing little more than letting him know he was there. In a moment, Ubu had him in a very tight bear hug, though he managed to quickly get out of it by sliding down to the ground and kicking up. Batman managed to avoid a few wide, lumbering swings from him, though the last he grabbed his arm, flipping him up over his shoulder and out of the fog.

Moving quickly, Batman leapt out to the pillar that Ubu had damaged when it stopped his flight. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Polaris and Green Arrow doing what they could against the assassins that had come to challenge them. Polaris was blasting yellow energy out at them as they tried to swarm him and bring him down, while Arrow was in an archery contest with another six. As he was about to grab Ubu, he turned his head and noted Allo, standing at the chest with a large shifting rainbow bubble around him. Ubu landed a pretty swift punch, but Batman rolled with it, grabbing his arm and forcing him down to the ground. He landed on top of him, slamming his head into the stone floor.

"Stop this, immediately!" he heard Ra's say from off to his left. Batman didn't bother to glance up. He was still wailing on Ubu, until he was nearly unconscious, then finally got up off of him and looked over. Ra's had Olivia held up in front of him, a knife to her throat. He had cut her just enough for her to bleed, and had her left arm held uncomfortably high, as she struggled to keep a grip on her bow. Polaris had turned, and had his fist aimed at Ra's, anger in his face, and some slight panic. There was pain in the girl's face.

"Bring him back," Ra's demanded. "I will have the clock, or she dies." To illustrate his point, he pulled on her shoulder, dislocating it with a sickening pop. Olivia cried out, grinding her teeth together. Her face was turning gray, as the blood ran down her exposed throat, onto her tunic. Polaris pressed his lips together.

"Let her go, now!" he demanded.

"Find the imp and tell him to return my clock to me."

Polaris let out a terrible shout, and used the yellow energy to create a large magnet, a magnet that pulled the knife away from Ra's. It ran across Olivia's throat as it did, just lightly. She let out a frightened cry, her eyes going wide until she realized that the wound was not fatal.

With the knife suddenly gone, Batman saw his chance. He leapt forward, rushing at Ra's exposed, unarmed hand- the only part of him that Batman could see, as he used the wounded archer as a human shield. Ra's was ready, however; he grabbed him by the shoulder and flipped him backwards. He flew through the air, hitting the column with enough force to snap his head forward then back. He lay on the ground for a moment, stunned and in pain.

"Now, you will contact your friend and have him return the piece to me, or I will kill her." Again, he heard a strained scream from Olivia. She was going to lose consciousness, and fast. Opening his eyes, Batman caught a flash of movement as Polaris made his way out of the antechamber. Ra's dropped Olivia onto the ground, forcing her onto her face. He motioned for Ubu, who stood up and grabbed her arms, holding them behind her painfully. She struggled, favoring her left arm.

"You won't get to him without her help," Olivia said, motioning with her head to Zatanna. Her voice was weak.

"Silence, infidel."

Batman finally managed to get to his feet, Walking forward as Ra's turned to him. "You'll regret that," he promised. He pulled the sword from his back, as Ra's grabbed one from a dead assassin nearby. They squared off, looking at each other past the blades for a long, tense moment. There was no more confusion; his grandfather was his enemy, to be dealt with as such. There was no turning back.

Their blades intercepted, over and over, until Ra's stepped back. He turned to look at the ground, as suddenly a yellow fist came up, grabbing Olivia and Ubu, pulling them down into the earth. Batman went to strike, but Ra's moved out of the way, and motioned gently with his hands. The dozen assassins that had been standing in wait suddenly rushed forward, striking at him fro every side. He did what he could to dodge them, but they were clustered to close; each movement he made only caused him to run into another punch. He took down the assassins one by one, ignoring their strikes as he made his way to the prize. Unfortunately, by the time he had gotten free of them, he found Ra's Al Ghul gone, as was Zatanna.

Batman quickly made his way out of the cave, to where he found Polaris, kneeling down over Olivia. She was unconscious, bloody and badly bruised. Zatanna was getting shakily to her feet, rubbing her head as she blinked. "Ra's is gone," he said.

Polaris looked over for just a moment, before looking back down at Olivia. "Her arm's been dislocated," he said.

"Where did Ubu go?"

Polaris motioned vaguely off to his right. "I sent him packing after he gave her a concussion," he said, making no attempt to mask the anger in his voice. Polaris or not, he was still protective, not as protective as her father, but then again, he was also more level-headed than her father, as well. It seemed to be the general consensus, still: she was young, and needed someone there for her. Batman wasn't about to complain; he knew something was up with her.

"We need to find out where Allo went with that clock," Zatanna said.

"Olivia needs-"

Before Polaris could finish, Zatanna was gone. He sighed, and looked at Batman. "Shall we?" he surrounded the three of them in yellow light, and started to make his way east, back to America.

Olivia awoke from the pain. Her left shoulder ached terribly, and she had a horrible headache. Reaching up, she touched her forehead, where the lug had hit her. She then touched the bandage that was around her neck. She looked around, and finally recognized one of the bedrooms in Wayne Manor. Getting up carefully, she found that she was in silk pajamas. Her clothing had been folded and pressed and put on the dresser nearby. Wrinkling her nose at the work that had gone into such care, she opened the door.

"Hello?" she called into the hallway. She started to walk down it, her bare feet sinking into the plush carpet with each step. For a moment, she had a nostalgia feeling of being home, of walking down the hall in the mornings, heading downstairs for breakfast, her mother at the stove… Quickly, she banished the thought from her mind, before the tears could come; before reality strained those memories.

"We're in the kitchen," she heard Kamal call back.

"Great," she shouted back. "Where's that at?"

"Just follow my voice."

Eventually, she made her way into the kitchen, as large as her living room and kitchen at home combined. Kamal and Minshi were sitting at the table, eating dinner. She walked over and sat down, the tile floor cold against the soles of her feet. "Good to see you up and moving," Kamal said. Mishi got up and went over to a small cabinet. Opening it, she pulled out a plate, and placed it down in front of her. Olivia thanked her, eating quickly. She didn't realize just how hungry she was. Checking the clock on the wall, she noted that it was after seven PM. Her stomach dropped.

"What day is this?"

"You've been asleep all afternoon," Kamal said.

"I have to get to Detroit," she said. "I have a meeting at the art museum tomorrow afternoon."

"With Agent Todd."

Olivia looked over, noting the wryness in his voice. "Yeah, Agent Todd," she replied. "And before you start, I already had this argument. I'm not changing my mind."

Kamal sighed. "At least, don't go alone."

Olivia shook her head. "I'm not going to be naïve and tell you not to follow. I already know what you do. Just, don't get yourself involved. I know that Todd probably has something planned, but I'm going to be the one to find out, _not you_." She said the last in a tone to tell him that there would be no room for discussion.

"What are you covering for?"

"For pop," she said. "Todd already trashed the house. I was just lucky he was at the shop at the time. If she wants to get pissy again, there's no one to stop her. I have to make certain he's safe."

"He's safe," Kamal assured her. "It would be too much of a pain to go through the extradition process just to get to you."

So, her hunch that he had been taken out of the country was right, after all. "Where?"

"The Swiss have some of the best medical facilities in the world. I'm sure he'll recover quickly."

Olivia smiled somewhat. That was one less worry on her mind. "Thanks," she said.

Kamal stood up. "I have something I want to show you," he said. Frowning, she followed him, out of the kitchen, through one of the many halls, and down into the cave. The stairwell was in poor shape, but it held their weight just fine all the same. He took her past the green, boiling pit in the center, past the beaten computer and the bench she had used her last stay at the Manor. He opened one of the large metal doors, and took her through a room that seemed to be nothing but disarray. Large, oversized objects lay at odd angles and on their sides throughout it.

"All this stuff from your father?" Olivia asked, as she looked around behind a large playing card. Nothing on the back.

"All but this last one."

Olivia frowned and turned, as he pulled back a large curtain. Behind it was a very strange machine, a small capsule with dozens of tubes leading to and from it, to a larger opaque capsule. From the larger capsule were two large tubes that also held the same green liquid that was in the main chamber. "What the hell is that?"

"I suppose you could say it was my mother."

Olivia's head snapped around. "What?"

Kamal sighed, walking over and touching the contraption gently. "My grandfather was not happy to hear of my mother's pregnancy," he began. "When he found out, he tore me from her body, but as I was his blood, he did not kill me. No, he put me in here, until I was to term. I was born in this, halfway across the world. When I came to Gotham, I took this with me; to remind me how family can twist one's judgment." He turned poignantly to Olivia.

"Is that why you told me this?" she asked, annoyed. "Thanks for the caveat, but I think I know what I'm doing."

"I don't think you do, Olivia."

"No one asked what you think," she snapped, turning around. "I need to go to Detroit. Just think of it as getting me out of your hair."

Behind her, she heard Kamal sigh. "Very well. I'll have Minshi drive you to the airport. You can take one of my private jets."

Olivia nodded, stalking out, making certain to keep her face obscured from Kamal. She was angry, definitely; how _dare_ he compare his own experience to her family? Besides, there were better ways of getting the point across than dragging her through the cave and to the abomination of a contraption that he kept. _Memory, my ass. Mom had a reason for what she did. We were an alternate reality; our lives were fake. It didn't matter if we died, because we weren't real in the first place. I know what she was thinking. Don't I?_

She made her way back up to the hall, where Minshi had just entered. "Ah, Master Wayne." Olivia turned to see Kamal just behind her. "I want to remind you of the art expo tonight."

"Yes, thank you, Minshi."

"Your invitation also requests that you bring a guest."

Minshi looked over at Olivia, who turned to Kamal. He was looking at her, too. "What?"

"Go with Minshi, she'll get you ready."

"Ready for what?"

Kamal smiled. "To cause a scandal."

Before she could say anything, Minshi had taken her by the shoulders and took her upstairs. After almost two hours of poking and prodding, she was seated in one of the large stretch limos that Kamal owned, on her way to the art museum. She looked out of the tinted windows, trying to cling to her annoyance. The truth was, she was sort of glad Kamal had asked her to go. If it was scandal he was looking for, then she was going to do her best.

They finally came up to the museum. There was a large banner out front, and hanging from every column, proclaiming the opening of the sculpture exhibit of a Vincent Raquellen. The limos were pulling up to the red carpet that had been laid out from the stairs of the museum to the curb, their occupants disembarking in a frenzy of press and photographers before they drove off.

Kamal was the first to get out, looking quite handsome in his tuxedo. He turned and offered Olivia his hand as she got out. Her gown was nothing like what she would normally wear: it was sleeveless, low cut, with a long slit up the right side of the skirt. Three inch stiletto heels finished the piece. She smiled and looked around, as she saw some of Gotham's richest and most prominent figures.

Inside, the museum was covered with them, and her smile turned to a sneer. They were pompous, arrogant, self-absorbed. "You know, pop would have a heart attack if he knew I was here," she said quietly to Kamal.

"You know, your father used to run in some of these very circles."

"And he's not proud of that fact, either."

Kamal shook his head somewhat. "The Queen Fund has done almost as much as the Wayne Foundation for helping people."

Olivia shrugged as she looked around. There were wait staff in formal dress, carrying hors d'oeuvre and drinks to the patrons who stood around in small group. In the center was a somewhat raised platform, and a man stood in the center of the largest group. He had on a pair of large glasses, a very flowing white shirt with gold cuffs, and a pair of awful purple slacks with lace going down the sides. "So, what am I supposed to do here?"

"Anything," Kamal said. "You're here to cause a distraction. You are Kamal Wayne's date, after all."

She grinned; perfect. "Then I'll see you in a little while."

"Where are you going, Olivia?" Kamal demanded.

She reached up and took a glass of wine from a server's tray as she came around. "To mingle," she replied over her shoulder, walking through the crowd as she sipped on the wine. It was good; too good. It tasted like wood soaked in vinegar, and she forced it down before putting it on another server's tray. As she paused to do so, she overheard some of the conversation behind her.

"…luxury tax is astronomical!" a man bemoaned. "I honestly don't see the point in such a tax. It's not as if they'll be making much off of it; only the rich can afford such items."

Olivia spun, grinning slightly. "See, therein is the genius of the tax!" she said, butting directly into the conversation, ignoring the confused glances she was getting from the overweight, overly pale men in terrible tuxedoes that only accented their weight. "In order for a tax to be worth it, it has to create revenue, else what point is there in a tax, hmm? Now, the only problem you have is that you don't see why there is a luxury tax. The point of the luxury tax is to allow you to keep getting these luxuries; someone has to pay the men on the docks to ship it all the way from China, and they must handle it delicately because it is, after all, hand made. Besides, where do you suppose we can afford to give you an across-the-board tax break if we don't tax luxuries? If the government _only_ taxed luxuries, then you'd have more money to spend on them, if you do the math."

The one man had excused himself from the conversation, but the other stood there smiling. From the glazed-over look in his eyes, she could tell that he wasn't paying attention to her words. "Well said, young lady. It's refreshing to see someone so interested in financial affairs. And you are?"

"Olivia," she said with a broad smile.

"Well, Olivia?" He held out one large, fatty arm. She forced herself to take it. "Have you met our guest of honor?"

"I can't say I have."

The man smiled. "Well, he and I are acquainted." _And I should be impressed? Please…._ "It would be a simple matter to introduce you."

Olivia smiled. It was better than she could have planned. "I'd love that!" She glanced over her shoulder to see Kamal standing in the midst of a half dozen women, all laughing as though he were actually funny. The fat man led her to the raised platform, where the man was lording over his group like a small tyrant. "Oh, well now," he said, his eye catching her and looking over her quickly. "Who is this lovely woman?"

"Olivia," she said.

"What kind of a name is that for a woman?" he asked, as the others around him laughed.

"What kind of an outfit is that for an artiste?"

He glared at her, and those around him fell silent at her brash remark. "Well, I can see there's no accounting for taste in the young," he said, turning his nose up. She smiled as he took insult.

"Well, I have enough taste to see that you're fortunate to be at the Gotham museum. The Smithsonian would never take your work."

"Smithsonian, bah!" he snorted. "They wouldn't know art if it bit them. And neither, for that matter, would you."

Olivia smiled. "I'm something of an artist myself," she said. "I just have a different means to that end. Besides, my art isn't being silently laughed at behind my back."

"You impudent whelp!" Olivia had a feeling he was going to continue, but the sound of broken glass suddenly filled the museum. Olivia looked up quickly, as the glass started to rain down on them. She pushed Raquellen to the floor, rolling down off of the raised platform. She watched as a single figure slid down to the marble floor on a rope. She wore a skintight purple leotard, black gloves and boots and a mask over her face with small, catlike ears, and a tail. She dropped a bag on the ground

"Sorry to drop in like this, but I'm going to need all of you to free yourselves your wallets and jewelry. Now!" Olivia moved to the front, standing in front of the woman. She looked over her, a slight smile on her face. "You too, sweetie."

"I don't think so," Olivia said.

The woman cocked one eyebrow. "Well now, you have an attitude, don't you?" She shifted, her hands coming up, the tips of her gloves showing sharp claws. "Care to dance?"

"Don't mind if I do." Olivia kicked down on the heel of her shoe, flipping the removed heel up into her hand. Quickly, she threw it, the point heading straight for her. Easily, the woman turned and swung, batting the heel out of the way.

"Not bad," she said, then sprung forward. Olivia jumped back, but not before the claws sliced across the front of her dress. The woman smiled. "So, what's your name, sweetie?"

"Ladies first," Olivia said. She started to dodge out of the way, as the woman moved closer and closer. She finally let out one well-placed punch in her mouth. She backed up a step, touching her lip and seeing blood on her fingers. She only smiled broader.

"Ooh. I didn't know you cared," she said, a glint in her eye.

Olivia rolled her eyes. She went for another punch, but the woman caught her arm and easily flipped her. Olivia could have gotten her balance…if she hadn't ripped at her still-sore left arm. She instead crashed into a pillar, falling through the table underneath. The woman came over, as she tried to get to her feet, landing on her chest. Again, her shoulder was jarred, as she stared up into the young woman's face.

"You mind getting up?"

"Yes. I'd love to stay and play a little more, sweetie, but I gotta run." Olivia didn't react fast enough as the woman leaned down and gave her a very long, very deep kiss. She bit her lip slightly, making her bleed just a little before pulling back. "You'll see Puma again, sweetie." With that, she leapt off of her and climbed back out through the broken skylight windows, bag over her back. Olivia managed to get up to her feet, touching her bleeding lip. She came out of her disbelieving trance when she heard sirens.

_Oh, damn._

Quickly, she slipped out the back, abandoning her shoes, and making her way back to Wayne mansion barefoot.

It was late evening in Virginia, and it had been a _very_ long day. Hal couldn't even bring himself to make a decent meal; instead, he had a TV dinner that had just been heated, and he was sitting in front of the TV. There, of course, was nothing on, and the dial finally rested on LNN. The commercial was just ending, and the female anchor was just coming back.

"This hour on LNN, the volunteer evacuation of Cancun as Hurricane Veronica makes its way towards Mexico has become mandatory. But first, we at LNN have finally received confirmation of a Meta-human tearing across Pittsburgh. This after three days of rumors of a Meta-human who has been described as, quote, "Featureless and shifting", unquote. The National Guard has been called in to the city to help protect a populace that is on the verge of paranoia. This, in the wake of the brutal attack on the city's police headquarters only a few hours ago."

Hal sighed, pushing away the tray. _Vigilance can't take breaks_, he thought, as he called the ring to his finger. He made his way through the night sky, north to Pittsburgh. It didn't take him long to find the city, and not much longer before he found the police station. The police tape was around it, and there were armored troop carriers and national guardsmen near the entrance.

As he watched, a car pulled up, and two men got out, both of them flashing FBI badges. Hal waited, watching from a distance as they exchanged words. The sudden blur of motion came as a shock, and he was barely in motion as he saw something form up from the street. She was truly ugly; her whole form seemed to shift as an amorphous blob of white and red. She threw her arm to the side, her fingers forming into blades as they skewered one of the FBI agents.

Polaris was the only reason that the blades on her other hand didn't kill the other agent. Instead, the blades sank deep into him, seeming to wrist and wrap around his ribs. He cried out in pain as she pulled. He flew up, hoping to dislodge her from him. Instead, her arm stretched, until he pulled her off the ground. She was still pulling, and he lost his concentration momentarily to the pain. Polaris fell, crashing through the roof of a large, flat building and tumbling into a pile of carpet samples. The shifting woman was there soon, standing before him with a horrifically twisted grin on her face.

He reached out with the ring and slammed her with yellow energy- or tried to. Her body forced a perfect circle around the blast, as she reached out, sinking her blades into him again. Seeing that her shifting needed room, he formed a large box, hoping to hem her in. Instead, she moved out of the way. Before his eyes, her body changed, turning into a large cannon. He flew backwards from the blast, through three racks and into the lighting section. As he managed to untangle himself from the mess of glass and wires, he saw the woman coming forward. Her eyes, bulging as they were, were filled with rage. He sent a quick energy blast at her, one that hit square in her center of mass. She flew back, into one of the downed racks, and dripped down as a puddle onto the ground. As soon as she lay still for a moment, she began to reform.

Seeing that he was in for a tough fight, Polaris steeled himself. She glared at him, turning her body into a rocket, rushing at him. She hit him square in the chest, shifting slightly into a missile as she did, exploding as she pinned him between herself and the concrete floor. She shifted again and leapt off of him. Polaris expected she would have struck again, had he not heard the sounds of footsteps, and one man shout out, "Freeze!"

Looking over, Polaris saw two men in black suits, each holding a large, rifle-like weapon. He saw a flash of movement, as the shifter went for one of them, her fingers as blades again. He put up a wall in front of the agent, though the shield shattered into tiny yellow chips. The man had enough time, however, to get out of the way in time. He fired on her, a strange blue glow that radiated from the barrel of the weapon. The hit made her scream, as she became an amorphous mass.

The other man fired at him. The blue glow seemed somewhat familiar, though at the moment, he couldn't put his finger on why; the sudden migraine that split through his head prevented him from thinking more or less about anything else. He forced himself into the air, flying out of the building and into the sky. He felt the gun hit him again, as he felt his will wavering.

_His will._

It was then that Hal realized that they were not FBI; they were MCC. And they knew who he was. They also knew that his old ring and his new ring were powered by sheer force of will.

_Great_, he thought, as he hovered a few miles above the ground, his head spinning. _Focus, Hal. Focus! You can't go back to DC, not in this shape. Todd could make her move any moment, and you don't want to be out of form for that. Home's probably wired. Think, there has to be-_

Suddenly, the answer hit him. He headed west, into the night as fast as he could, crossing over the country until he finally came to California, almost two hours later. By then, he felt horrible, barely able to keep his focus enough to use the ring. He found the abandoned strip of land, and the silos, buildings, and landing strip that had once been Ferris Air Field. It was, of course, now closed, and he welcomed the privacy as he landed, searching through the area on foot.

He managed to find some old stores of rations, which of course never went bad (or started out bad), and found that there was still water running to the place. The first thing he did, besides changing back to his old, human form, was to take a long, cold shower. The icy water stung at his cuts as the blood was cleaned away in the daze he was in. It almost felt like he was drunk, but much worse. At once, he finally felt something click in his mind; the blue energy, that had seemed familiar, definitely was. He had seen it course over Clark when Olivia had shot him with one of her arrows. He didn't know what it meant, but at the moment, it didn't matter, either. The yellow ring sat on the sill in front of the mirror in the shower room, as he looked at himself in the mirror.

Again, slowly, his reflection changed, and he again saw the face of the Spectre peering back out at him. Every move he made was mimicked, as he dressed and put the ring in his pocket; he was too exhausted to use it. The only time he had even been given a glimpse of what it was like for a normal person to use the ring was when Ollie had told him about his return. He had described it as a feeling of going three days without sleep; Hal could now empathize.

"Your penance is not up, Hal Jordan," he heard the Spectre say. Hal turned, leaving the area. As he walked past a bank of old, un-powered candy machines, he again saw his reflection as that of the Spectre. "Your time was not yet up, Jordan."

_No, _he thought, holding his head in his hands, squeezing his eyes closed. _No, he's not there. I'm just seeing things. I'm so tired I'm deliri-_ He didn't have a chance to finish his sentence in his own mind, as the candy machine's glass suddenly cracked. Hal looked over at the fractured glass. The Spectre was still peering out from the fragments, glaring at him with empty white eyes.

_I just need to get some sleep_.

Hal made his way into the bays, and was mildly surprised to see planes still in the hangars. He pulled the cushions from a few of them, placing them down back to back to serve as a bed. Lying down, hoping that he would not dream, he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

Olivia had finally made her way back to Wayne Manor, bloodied and bruised but otherwise all in one piece. She was greeted by Minshi at the door, then by Kamal, who had a secretive smile on his face.

"Shut the fuck up," she growled at him.

"Have fun this evening?"

"Shut the fuck up," she repeated. She went upstairs and changed quickly, back into her jeans and T-shirt, and then went downstairs again. "Can I use your stuff downstairs?" she asked, flipping out her bow. "I have some work I want to do."

"Be my guess."

She went downstairs, plopping down on the bench again. She reached over and grabbed a few tools, and flipped open the access panel of the bow, revealing the circuitry inside. Within a few minutes, she had managed to place a very small chip within, wiring it to the controls, and managed to close everything back up. By then, Kamal had come down, and was sitting nearby.

"What were you doing?" he asked.

"Putting a randomizing capacitor in," she said. "It'll allow me a little more versatility that I've been lacking."

Just as he was about to say something, the nearby phone rang. His face grew drawn, as he reached over and answered the phone. There was silence for a moment, as he listened in. "Grandfather."

Olivia bit down on her lower lip, forgetting that it was cut before the pain made her snap her jaw open. He put the phone on speaker, so that she could hear the conversation.

"…the fifth piece of the Pentana. I know your little friend has it. Return it to me, and I will make certain that you have a place in my new future."

"I won't condone the changing of time," Kamal said,

"Think about it for a moment, Kamal," Ra's said, his voice low. "This world is imperfect. The infidels have destroyed it, the environment, the cities. Crime is rampant; pollution has made the very water unhealthy to drink. Murder, rape, theft. All of these are byproducts of the people that live here. If we were to go back in time, we would be able to prevent this world. We could create a perfect utopia."

"With you as lord," Kamal pointed out dryly.

"If it so fits." Olivia had to admit, it sounded good. She just knew that, after he thought nothing of taking her hostage, dislocating her arm and threatening to cut her throat, he was just trying to get to Kamal. The man wasn't having it.

"I will not help you destroy time," Kamal said.

"Kamal, listen to-" His voice was cut off, as Kamal hung up the phone.

"Thanks," Olivia said. "He was starting to piss me off. Besides, it's about time I got to the airport."

"Yes," Kamal said. "Your meeting with Todd."

"Like I said, I have my reasons." She turned away, as she felt Kamal's stare at the back of her head. "I already told you, I'm going to be the distraction. You may say pop's safe, but you'll forgive me if I decide to make certain of that personally."

He sighed. "Very well. Minshi will drive you to the airport."

Olivia nodded, making certain her bow was in working order before collapsing it back down into the Zippo. She went up, and into the garage. Minshi already had a car started, and she got in. The drive to the airport was a very short one, and the private plane that Kamal had promised was sitting idling on the tarmac. She got inside, as the pilot introduced himself to her."

"Captain Thomas Blakemore, at your service," he said. "Master Wayne tells me you're going to Detroit?"

"Yeah," Olivia said, sitting down in the back. Already, her fingers were digging into the armrests. "I have an important meeting, so I'd like to get there in one piece, please."

"No worries," Blakemore said, as he locked up the hatch and started to taxi out onto the runway. "I flew in both Gulf conflicts. This bay will get to Detroit without a hitch."

Olivia was glad when, an hour and a half later, he was correct. She thanked him (and apologized for the small tears that were in the upholstery) and left the plane. She walked on foot to the museum, a large, boxy building with square columns and a terrible abstract sculpture of a man and a dog out front. She went inside, got into line, and finally came up to the box office.

"Ten dollars," the woman behind the glass said.

Olivia reached into her wallet, and looked inside. No cash. Her two credit cards were useless. "Uh, I'm supposed to be meeting someone," she said, trying to think quickly. She could try and jump the turn style, but it would be only a few moments before security was on her. She didn't have anything worth ten dollars to pawn.

"Oh, Miss Queen?"

Olivia paused, looking up, feeling her heartbeat quicken. "Yes?" she answered cautiously.

"Your ticket has already been paid for." The cashier gave her a ticket. She thanked her, and went forward, trying to hide her displeasure. Todd had planned everything out, all right. Now, she knew that she had entered the building.

Olivia walked through, browsing at the paintings that were hung on the wall. The entire building was drab, and the paintings were tired. She paused in front of one, a Dali. The absurdity of it astonished her, and she couldn't help but stare at the fluid lifelike bodies against the blocky background.

"It's one of his least well known works of art."

Olivia jumped, spinning. Agent Todd was standing behind her, still in the skirted suit and trench coat, hands deep in her pockets. "Thanks for the free ticket," she said.

"I know your situation is precarious right now," she said. "I was hoping that we could meet face to face, Olivia."

"Yeah, well, here I am," she said with a smirk. "Not much to look at, huh?"

"Looks can be deceiving. That is part of what makes you so dangerous. Your vigilantism is dangerous and chaotic."

"No, you have the wrong idea," Olivia said, making certain to move her hands animatedly as she spoke. "I _prevent_ danger and chaos. Unlike you Homeland Security watchdogs."

"Homeland Security has no jurisdiction over the MCC."

"Oh, then who do you answer to?"

"I don't think that information is needed. Not yet."

Olivia shook her head. "Then why are you here? You had a reason to want to meet me face to face. Well?"

Todd looked over her shoulder, as a patron walked slowly past. She waited until he was out of earshot to continue softly. "Because we're not what you think we are. We are protecting the populace by putting away dangerous Meta-humans."

"Last I checked, your definition of 'dangerous' was anyone who demonstrated powers, whether they used them for ill or not. Besides, what are you talking to me for? I'm not a Meta-human."

"Your skills are far beyond any ever experienced on this earth," Todd said. "It is something that no mere mortal could ever hope to accomplish."

Olivia waved away the compliment with her hand. "Please," she said. "I just happen to practice. It's not like I have a gene. I got a fifty-fifty shot of getting it, and I got gypped."

"We don't see it that way. In fact, that is why we wanted to come to you in the first place. After careful consideration, we have decided that we would like you to assist us in stopping the Meta-human threat."

Olivia found herself at a loss of words again. "You….you what?"

"We want your help. We're offering you a chance to do some good, legally."

She looked around the room, suddenly filled with a mild sense of paranoia. Was it a trap? "That's a bit heavy," she said. She reached under her flannel shirt and pulled out the half-empty pack of cigarettes form her breast pocket. Todd made no movement. "Mind if we go out for a smoke?"

"Not at all."

A minute later, they were standing off to the side of the museum steps. Olivia was trying to hide her surprise and confusion behind the cigarette that Todd had lit with her own lighter. _Damn, didn't even give me a chance. She must know. Fuck her._

"Okay, let me get this straight," Olivia said. "You want me to help you."

"Yes."

"And why should I? Because you've got some sort of blackmail on me? Because you know where my family is?"

Todd shook her head. "We don't want to threaten your family," she said.

"Then why did you toss the house?"

"To get your attention," she replied. "If we so wished it, you would not have known that we were there. We have been watching you for a very long time, Olivia. You and your family. And your recent actions have been causing turbulence. You were creating noise. Making them act up."

"I don't make my parents do anything," Olivia growled, pointing at her with the cigarette.

"No, of course not. You see, your noise has coincided with a bill that is currently being pushed by Senator Jordan. It's requesting certain freedoms be given the Meta-humans. But it won't pass."

"How can you be so sure?"

"It won't pass," Todd said again, her voice concrete. "There's too much fear. Tell me. If your Uncle Hal wanted to, how long do you think it would take him to level Washington, DC?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Olivia said, looking away as she took another drag. She was starting to feel more than just a little uncomfortable. She was starting to feel that coming was actually a _bad_ idea. She was also hoping that, wherever Batman was, he wouldn't show up and ruin the whole damn thing. She wasn't ready to break off the talks, not yet.

"Please, Olivia. We know about your uncle being Green Lantern. Or Polaris, whichever he wishes." Olivia just stared at her. "We also know about your friend Kamal Wayne and his dark mission in Gotham. And your impish friend as well. Now, how long do you think it would take your uncle to level the city?"

"Uncle Hal wouldn't do that," Olivia protested.

"Just answer the question."

She looked away. "A half hour," she admitted. She felt suddenly…._dirty_.

"You underestimate his power," Todd said. "We have done the calculations. It would take him exactly four minutes to level the city. And if he wanted to attack New York? Three minutes, fifty four seconds. My point is that if push came to shove, would you be able to stop him?"

"I wouldn't ha-"

"Would you be able to stop him, Olivia?"

She turned away again, throwing the butt of her cigarette down angrily. "No."

"The MCC has come up with a weapon. It won't hurt the Meta-humans, but it will drain them of their power. It will pacify them in one shot."

Olivia looked up, and started to laugh. "You made your own neutralizer arrow," she said.

"Yes, that little bit of technology you invented was quite ingenious," Todd said with a smile. "We merely perfected it.

"How long have you been spying on me?" Olivia asked, remembering her anger.

"For about ten years now. We had to make certain that your parents didn't start to cultivate you into a miniature version of them. It was also for your own good. We didn't know if you would manifest your mother's powers, and we had plans for you. We would have taken you out of that household, had your father gotten any worse."

"You leave me father out of this!" Olivia snapped. How _dare_ she make such a comment? "You don't know what he did for me!"

"Yes, we do. We watched as you grew mired in the past."

"I'm not," she said.

"Oh? Then Green Arrow was all your original idea?" There was a slight mocking tone to her voice.

"I made the bow," she said. "You'll never see me pull an arrow."

"Still, your abilities far supercede any other. The people will feel safer at night, knowing that someone with such skill is wielding the one weapon that can bring any Meta-human to his knees."

"Now, let's say hypothetically, that I was to decline your _very generous_ offer," Olivia said. "What am I looking at as the consequences?"

"If you were to lead a life as a regular American citizen, nothing. We would leave you alone. However, if you continue on the same track as you have been on, then we will treat you no different as we treated the others."

Olivia thought on it for a moment. She was silent, and Todd took that moment to say something. "It is your chance to help get your Meta-human friends their rights back."

She felt the knife twist in her gut, as she looked up. Todd stood there, her face suddenly unreadable, waiting for a reply. Olivia figured she already knew what the reply was going to be. She had maneuvered into a position where her only real option was to accept.

"Fine," she said. "I'll do it. I'll be your sharpshooter. But in return, you have to tell me why you planted an android in as the Lieutenant Governor of Nevada."

For the first time in the conversation, it looked as though Todd had met a question she was not prepared for. "What are you talking about?"

"The attack on Bally's in Las Vegas. I found an android that was supposed to be Brent Stewart, Lt Governor of the state. I want to know why it was there."

"I don't know. But it deserves further investigation. This way." She stepped towards the curb, as a black limo pulled up. Olivia followed her, sitting down inside it. "To the airport," she told the driver, who pulled away smoothly. "Now, we've also lost your friend."

"Who?"

"You didn't know he was there?"

_Damn it, Kamal!_ "Yeah, I knew he was there. At least, I knew he would _be_ there. I just didn't know who he was."

"Ah. Well."

"As for this android…"

"We'll look into it. Actually, there is one thing we'd like your input on, as well." She reached over and touched a button. A small TV screen swiveled out of the wooden bar, and flickered on. "We filmed this at a Home Depot in Pittsburgh. We had placed a Meta-human in the city and let her run loose, in the hopes of drawing out your Uncle. There he is."

Olivia watched in horror as the woman, who was shifting constantly, attacked Polaris. The fight ended when two agents holding very odd-looking weapons entered, firing blue energy that the pair. "You let her loose in the city? And you complain about _me_ causing chaos."

"We needed to test our new weapon. It worked wonderfully. Unfortunately, we seem to have lost track of your Uncle. Do you have any idea where he might have gone off to?"

Olivia thought for a moment. She didn't want to divulge any information, not to Todd, but if her uncle was hurt, or worse, then she'd want to find him. "The only places I can think of are his home, pop's place, the shop, or the Manor."

"He's not in any of those," Todd confirmed.

Olivia shrugged. "I don't know. He could have gone anywhere."

"This android you were talking about. Where is it?"

"In the Manor." Olivia cringed. _Oh well. Kamal's got enough security._

Todd picked up a small phone headset from the armrest. "Yes. I need you to head to sector fifteen and take out the trash. No. Just photos will be fine. Make certain it is undisturbed." Olivia could only stare at her. "We'll know about it soon enough, and then we can start the investigation."

"It might be some sort of-"

"It's no use to make guesses at this point," she said. "If you'd like, I can assign you to the case after you've started."

"Sure," Olivia said. "Where are we going, anyway?"

"Valley Forge," she said. "To our training grounds."

"Before we do that, you should probably know that I'm working on something big here," Olivia said. "Something earth-shattering."

"Oh?" Todd asked, with mild surprise.

"Yes. Ra's Al Ghul is trying to get a hold of the-"

"Pentana of Time." Olivia paused. How the _hell_ did she know that? "Your little impish friend brought it right to us. I assure you, it is someplace very safe."

"Get out of my head," Olivia growled.

Todd favored her with a tight smile. "I may also be a Meta-human, but that is not my power, I assure you."

The rest of the journey was made in silence, as Olivia felt a small knot in the pit of her stomach. Her mind swirled with doubt, especially on the plane ride from Detroit to Philadelphia. There, another limo took them about an hour out of the city, into a small building that was part of a historical town. The driver got out, grabbed a switch on the wall, and lowered the car down below the floor. A few minutes later, Olivia found herself stepping out of the limo into an underground garage complex, with three dozen other vehicles, from limos to armored troop carriers, sitting underground. She followed Todd through the halls, as men in quasi-military uniforms passed. The entire place looked like an underground version of Area 51.

She stopped in front of a man, who was standing at a doorway. "Olivia, this is Agent Krest. He will take you to processing, and I suppose you're hungry as well?"

"Damn straight," she said, and was glad to see Todd shift a little in discomfort.

"He will also take you to the cafeteria. You will have a briefing at 1700."

"Are there phones I could use?" she asked.

"Yes, but they are monitored."

"I figured as much," she answered wryly. "And it doesn't matter."

"If you say anything that might compromise this base or our mission, the call will be terminated," Todd threatened,

"Relax," Olivia said, as she started down the hall. "I'm just going to check on my father. I worry, you know." Krest managed to catch up to her in a few strides, and took her through the processing, down to get a quick bite to eat, then to the small phone room. She sat down, Krest staying at the door. Thinking for a moment, she dialed Kamal's number.

"Wayne Manor," Minshi answered.

"Hey, Minshi, it's Olivia," she said. "Is Kamal available?"

"Hold, please." She waited nearly two minutes, before she finally heard his voice on the other end. His accent was almost nonexistent. _Oh shit, he is severely pissed at me._

"Olivia."

"Hey, Kamal. Listen, I need to get in touch with pop, do you have the phone number to the hospital he's in?"

"Sure, hold on a moment while I get it. I need to look up the country code, as well. It's not often that I call Switzerland." She waited a moment, before he began to rattle off a long string of numbers.

"Thanks, Kamal. If you hear from him, or from Uncle Hal, tell 'em I love 'em." She hung up quickly, her face turning bright red. She looked at the numbers in front of her, picked up the phone and dialed with a shaky hand. The voice that came back was speaking in German.

_Shit, shit, shit, what was that phrase?_ "Uh, hi! Spreche sie ingles?" She winced. She had always hated language classes.

"Yes," a thickly-accented voice came back over the phone.

"Yes, I'd like to speak to one of your patients, Oliver Queen."

"Hold please." There was a short pause, and the nurse came back. "I am sorry; no calls are permitted to the intensive care unit."

_Intensive care unit? Why the hell is he still in the intensive care unit!_ "Well, can I speak to his doctor, then?"

"Hold, please." After another couple minutes, a man's thickly-accented voice came over the phone.

"Yes, hello!" Olivia said quickly. "I was calling about Oliver Queen. I'm his daughter. I wanted to see how he was."

"Well, his wounds were very extensive," he said. "After a couple emergency surgeries, I believe he is ready to recover. Unfortunately, he is unconscious right now."

"How long will until he wakes up?" Olivia asked, trying to keep the tremor out of her voice.

"I would say another 48 hours, at least."

"Is his wife there? My mother, Dinah Queen."

"I'm sorry, I can't say I am familiar with that name."

She felt her heart sink even lower. "Oh. Thank you." She hung up the phone quickly, staring at it. She wanted to be angry, to cover up the hollowness she suddenly felt, but there was no anger. Only…only a deep, deep sadness that wouldn't even manifest as tears.

"We have to go," she heard Krest say behind her. She nodded, getting up and following him listlessly to the briefing room. He led her inside, where Todd was sitting at a table with a dozen other people. On the view screen behind them, obviously on a long-distance conference call, were two men. One was a bit older and balding, somewhat overweight. The other was young, perhaps Olivia's own age, with somewhat unruly blonde hair and a sharp, featured face. As the other man's image winked out, she watched as this younger man listened to Todd intently. _Damn….._

"Very well, Agent West. We look forward to your next report." His image also winked out as well, and the dozen gentlemen seated at the table all stood up and began to file out, past Olivia.

"Sorry, was I early?" she asked.

"No, actually, you were right on time. Have a seat."

Olivia sat down, as Todd dismissed Krest and placed a large binder in front of her. Olivia looked at it, then picked it up. "These are some rules that you will need to follow while you're here at the installation," Todd said. "You'll have the rest of the day to rest up. Your training will begin tomorrow morning. As of this moment, you are only permitted in public areas, except for your quarters. You are not permitted to leave the installation unless someone accompanies you. Other than that, any time not taken up by training is your own. Do you have any questions?"

"Yeah, a few," she said. She started to count off on her fingers. "One, Can I smoke? Two, what are the cafeteria's hours? Three, any rules on phone time?"

"Smoking is permitted in your quarters," she answered. "The cafeteria is open to you whenever you like. And all phone calls will be monitored. Other than that, you are free to use them."

Olivia forced a smile onto her face, though she felt like she was getting dangerously close to a flame. "Then where's my room?"

Kamal looked up as the line went dead. The signal had been routed and rerouted through a number of substations, all in an attempt to mask the signal's origin. Unfortunately, their security systems failed, and he found the signal to be coming from Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. Kamal's initial gut instinct of something going on with Olivia had been right; she had turned on them and gone over to the MCC. And she had bought their bullshit completely and utterly.

Not even for a moment did he think that her choice had been decided by the actions he and the others had taken. Never did the way they treated her in the past factor in. She was merely a traitor; nothing more.

He had managed to track Todd's plane to the Philadelphia International Airport, which only gave his trace an alibi. Putting the information into the computer for future use, he began to research the news feed that he had been cycling through for the past hour. Hal had gone missing; he knew form the reports in the senate that his assistant had been fielding all of his calls, and that his cell phone was not answering. He had traced the cell's signal to somewhere in Missouri, but he had more or less ruled out that he was there; the cell was no longer working. He was trying to cover his tracks.

Kamal rubbed his eyes and sat back. Hal missing after the little jaunt to Pittsburgh, and Olivia having turned coat and thrown in her lot with the MCC. To top it all off, Allo was still nowhere to be found with the last piece of the Pentana. He knew that Ra's had not gotten a hold of him; he would not have called if he had. Which meant he was off somewhere, alone, with a very dangerous artifact.

There were many mysteries for the Batman.


	5. Chapter 5 Multiverse

Everything that had happened before was merely a prologue to the events that were about to unfold, and I can confidently say that none of us were prepared for any of them, let alone me. There was a small period of time, probably about a week or so, where it had seemed that things were going to be settling down and getting back to the closest thing to normal we could all expect. Kamal kept his vigil of Gotham, doing whatever it was that Batman did at night in Gotham; he even succeeded in saving the city from someone who became known as the Gentleman Ghost, claiming he owned the city or some other such nonsense. It was a pretty good combination of detective work and sheer ability to kick ass, though I hear he made a big mess out of the MCC agents who had been sent in...well, both times. Allo had dropped off the fifth piece of the Pentana at home, leaving it for the MCC with an explanation. I figure he went back home to his dimension or something, which is all the better- I would have kicked his little munchkin ass if I had ever seen him again. And me, I was the newest MCC agent in training, so I guess I couldn't be too upset that it ended up someplace safe, even though he couldn't possibly have known that he could trust them at the time. I was in training during that time, under the tutelage of Agent Todd and an Agent West...Aidan, as I came to know him, and he was Wally's son, as I had suspected. That relationship (and that night) changed my life, certainly. However, that wasn't the biggest change. The biggest change, an earth-shaking one, was occurring not only on the other side of the country, but thousands of years in the future. Uncle Hal had been taken to the future, where there was a civil war between no more than a handful of survivors and a great empire trying to take over earth. As was usual, he weighed his options, and in the end made the right decisions; decisions that made the Guardians stand up and make their intentions known. They wanted him to become a Green Lantern again, but Hal refused. He was happy working on his own, and when he found out that the survivors had access to time travel, he asked that they send him back 25 years before his own time, to Gotham. There, he went to the alley where the entire mess happened.

Unfortunately, Uncle Hal of 25 years ago was warned by the Corp of an impending time rift, and went to stop this chronal intruder with the two heroes who were currently running in Gotham: Batman and Black Canary. Polaris tried to convince Green Lantern of the good he was doing, but GL was having none of it; so Polaris grabbed the gunmen and took off with them, thinking that it would prevent the murders. Black Canary was the only one left following, but Mom was always smart; she called for backup, and the League made certain to help. That only left Green Lantern and Batman unaccounted for.

But they had other plans. Green Lantern picked up the gun and waited. Batman made his way back to the alley, trying to stop the murders, but he was too late; to protect the time stream, Green Lantern killed Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen, and left only one witness- Batman .There's only one other piece I can't fill it on my own, as follows:

_Oa was exactly as Hal remembered it, as he was called forth to answer for his crime of trespassing through time. He was angry, angry that he had literally stopped himself from changing things for the better, and even angrier that the Guardians were so short-sighted that they could not see the twenty five years of suffering that he had already seen, and the many more years that were to come. He had a vested interest in seeing that the time stream be set right, not only for himself; his niece deserved a chance to live in a world without a broken home, as did everyone else's nieces and nephews, sons and daughters and cousins. _

_He stood before the Guardians in full costume, helmet and all, defiant. "Hal Jordan," one said, his voice booming over the floor. "You have purposely entered the time stream with the intention of changing the events of the past. Such transgression cannot and will not be forgiven."_

_"You haven't seen what their deaths have culminated in," Hal argued. "Panic, paranoia, danger and death. The heroes of that world are going to be destroyed, their lives shattered, millions of lives shattered. I cannot accept that you would not want to right this wrong!"_

_"You were wrong to go into the past in the first place." Off to his left, Hal heard his own voice, and felt a very odd mixture of nostalgia, disgust and déjà vu as he looked over at himself, twenty five years younger, as a proud Green Lantern. "I made certain you didn't ruin the time stream."_

_"It would have made the future better."_

_"You couldn't promise me that in the alley, and I know you can't promise them that now," Green Lantern said, gesturing to the Guardians._

_"The only thing left for us to do is to judge your punishment."_

_Hal stared at them. He knew exactly what they wanted, and he wasn't about to give it to them. "I won't apologize for my actions," he said._

_"Then we have no choice. We must banish you from this dimension, where you can do no harm."_

_Another Guardian spoke up. "We cannot leave two Hal Jordans to occupy the same time," he said. "To do so runs a great risk of a paradox forming."_

_The other Guardian nodded absently. "As long as he remains in this dimension, yes. The matter will need debate. In the meantime," he said, turning his attention back to Hal, "we order you to surrender your ring and be taken to a place to wait for judgment."_

_Hal looked over at himself, standing on the side with his arms crossed, and then to the Guardians. He pulled the ring off his finger deliberately, throwing it down onto the ground in front of him and crushing it under his boot. The small explosion of Qwardian energy did little more than send a violent shock through him, as off to his right, a swirling vortex opened. Green Lantern stepped forward._

_"I don't need an escort," Hal growled, glaring at himself once more. He looked at the Guardians, then turned, marching proudly into the vortex. It shut behind him._

_At this point, it is important to note that the time stream had, in fact, been slightly changed due to the actions of Polaris. Hal Jordan remained a steadfast member of the Green Lantern Corps, never leaving them. He was never corrupted as Parallax, nor was he ever inhabited by the Spectre; Polaris never came to be, though any actions he had taken were instead done by Green Lantern. Bruce Wayne made certain to remember that it was Hal Jordan who had caused the murder of Lane and Olsen, and thus caused the backlash that was still being felt twenty five years later. These were the only events altered by this specific incursion into time._

The rest of the crisis can be summed up easily enough by myself, though I suspect a few parts here and there may be missing. Just remember that it's not really that important; you'll understand why when I'm finished.

I can start the day of the meeting. I woke up that morning, and was glad that I had ended up collapsing on the outer side of the bed; Aidan was still asleep next to me, and from what I could tell, it looked like he had not moved all night. I can't say I had been really paying attention once I closed my eyes, though. I got out of bed quietly, trying not to wake him yet, and went to find my clothes- or, more accurately, what I had been wearing when I had gone to visit him the night before. I had been down at the pool, relaxing after a successful test of the new weapon in Phoenix, when he had come back. He was bruised and bloodied and had a nasty black eye from a run-in with Kamal at the stadium. Todd was severely pissed, but I understood what he had been up against; I had, after all, teamed up with the billionaire more than once, and I knew what inhuman things he was actually capable of.

I put the bikini and t-shirt on and sat down next to him on the bed. Yeah, he was probably still exhausted, but I had a feeling he'd be hungry, too. I reached over and pushed on his right shoulder, the one that wasn't swollen and bruised. His head tilted to the side, before he managed to force his eyes open. He looked up at me and smiled. "Hey, Beautiful."

I smiled back. "Good morning," was all I said, as he sat up and kissed my cheek. I wasn't used to that kind of morning-after attention, and if anything, it just put me in a better mood. He moved his sore shoulder, trying to loosen it a bit, as I stood up. "I thought you'd like to go grab some breakfast."

"You going to the cafeteria in that?" he asked, and I looked down at the t-shirt I wore. It was pretty sheer, showing the bikini underneath, especially where it was blue.

I smiled at him, somewhat mischievously. "You're right," I said. "We'll have to stop by my room first."

He got the implications, and it took about two hours until we finally made our way down to the cafeteria. He was in one of his usual suits, tie and all, and I really didn't have much else besides suits anymore, either. We were quiet for the most part, but not the uncomfortable silence I usually got; no, this was more along the lines of we're-both-tired-and-we-know-it quiet. It was….nice.

"West. Queen." I looked over to see Todd standing at the end of the table, looking down at the both of us. I tried not to flush, and I tried to look innocent, though that was probably making me seem less so. As if the bags under our eyes and our jumpiness weren't obvious, we both tried to play her off. "Yes?" he answered, the same time I did. Our eyes met for a moment, and he looked just as nervous as I felt. I couldn't remember the last time I was embarrassed by it.

If Todd noted our odd behavior, she ignored it. "Get ready, both of you. We're leaving in fifteen minutes."

"Why?" I asked, still trying to play nonchalant.

"We've got a meeting with the Chief."

I felt something inside bubble a little bit when she said that. I knew that Todd had no idea who the Chief was, and neither did Aidan. "Damn," I breathed. "I can understand him wanting to see the two of you, I mean, you guys are important. But he wants to see me?"

"You're the one who handles the weapon," Todd said. "And, you've only got fourteen minutes left." She turned and walked away, leaving me and Aidan to stare at each other. Finally, we snapped out of it, making our way back up to the surface. Except for the test, I hadn't seen the sun in almost a week. It felt good to be in it again, but my stomach soon dropped as I realized that we'd be taking air transportation to see the Chief. Now, I'm no expert on aircraft, and there's no reason I'd really want to become one, but the helicopter that was waiting for us outside looked very much like the ones I had dodged on the roof of Gotham Mercy Hospital. It felt like ages ago, but I still was berating myself for it.

To make matters worse, the inside was only a bench- nothing for me to grab on to. I set my jaw and tried hard not to look too frightened, as the helicopter lumbered its way into the sky. I couldn't help but grab the bench tightly, until I felt a hand over mine- Aidan's. He was looking at me, and ran his thumb over my hand. I forced a sickly smile onto my face and tried not to crush his fingers when I took them, relieved and still confused. What exactly had last night meant to him? More importantly, what did it mean to me? I wasn't really sure, and it was enough to get my mind off the fifteen-minute jaunt through the sky. That is, until another thought took its place.

"You know, the Chief's never met me before," she said. "He may not be too thrilled to find out you recruited a high school dropout to use his precious weapon."

"The Chief has your file," was all Todd said in reply. I only felt more nervous.

It wasn't long before the helicopter finally landed on solid ground, and I was quick to get out, the blades making my hair fly into my face. In front of us was a large, grassy hill, and a single, gnarled tree. Todd went over and touched a part of it, only to have it slide away, revealing a long, descending ramp. The helicopter lifted off again and flew away, I figured back to Valley Forge. I never got a chance to find out.

I was the last one down the ramp, and into a long subterranean tunnel. It smelled of moisture and dirt and old moss, which was pretty much what the walls and floor were made out of. We all walked down them, until we reached a wooden door. I was mildly surprised when, instead of swinging in or out, the door slid sideways, into the earthen wall. Beyond that was a hallway, made entirely of a silver metal. Our shoes rang against the flooring as we walked down, until we finally reached an elevator. Heading down for thirty seconds (I was counting), the doors finally opened, and we went down another hall. Finally, we came to a large room, where a huge bank of sophisticated computers lined the far wall and the left wall. To the right, seemingly out of place, was empty space and a single, wide spiral staircase. There was one chair in front of the computers, facing us.

"So, this is where we're supposed to meet the Chief?" I asked, taking a step forward, towards the computers.

"Yes," I heard a man's voice coming from my right, and then footsteps coming down the staircase. He was old, using a cane, wearing an expensive-looking suit. When I finally saw his face, he looked just about the same age as my father, but that age was much harsher to him; he was stooped over, his face drawn in, losing most of his gray hair. He leaned heavily on the cane as he got down to the floor, and looked over at us. He only glanced at Todd and Aidan, but he eyed me with a cold intensity I found disturbing at the time.

"I'm glad that the three of you could make it," he said, as he sat down in front of the computers, still facing us. "With my team finally assembled, I've no doubt that we can bring this crisis under control and finally make the man who's responsible for it pay." He looked over each of us as he spoke. "Agent West, your speed has been a great asset in the past. Agent Todd, though I know that is not your real name, you have been my most trusted of associates." Though his eyes weren't friendly when he had looked at them, it seemed like the old man saved his particularly withering glare for me.

"Agent in Training Queen, I have to admit, you're not precisely what I expected. Then again, appearances can be deceiving. I have been watching you for a very long time," he said. "You have shown great promise."

"How long?" I challenged.

He didn't even smile, as he said, "From the day your mother and father brought you home from the hospital. I had been hoping that you would be a little more even-tempered, but that can be rectified."

"I like how I am, thanks," I retorted.

"It would have made telling you this somewhat easier, but I suspect you'd still have trouble believing me. Just know that I'm telling you the truth, no matter what you might think."

I stared at him, but his eyes were still cold and emotionless. I was starting to get a distinct chill looking at him. "What are you talking about?"

"Twenty five years ago, two murders changed the world, as you well know," he explained. "However, I alone know that the newspapers lied, and that Lane and Olsen were not killed by random thugs in an alley. They were killed by Hal Jordan."

It took me a moment to realize what he was saying. The first thing my mind told me was that Uncle Hal had killed the thugs, but I think that might have been a delaying mechanism, while I tried to wrap my brain around what he said. I felt the air leave my body in one word. "What?" I managed to gasp for air again, shaking my head. I knew it was wrong; Uncle Hal was a Green Lantern. More importantly, he was a good man. He was my father's best friend, and it was pretty difficult to get my father's respect, let alone his friendship. "No, you're wrong," I managed to finally say. "Uncle Hal would never…"

The old man cut me off with a gentle wave of his hand. "I watched him pull the trigger myself. Twice. I tried to stop him, but I failed. Now, with the three of you, we can make him pay for his crimes."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. In fact, it was hard to hear at all. I wanted to sit down, but there was no place to sit, and somehow through the haze, I knew not to fall to my knees in front of this man, this man who managed to silence me with a simple motion. Not even Superman had been able to do that. These thoughts, however, came from hindsight. At the time, I was just shocked. "There is no way my uncle…"

"Your uncle was confronted by a man named Polaris," the old man said. "He happened to also be Hal Jordan, one from the future. Polaris told Green Lantern what his purpose was, but Lantern would not allow him to change the time stream, even for good. So, when Polaris removed the murderers from the scene, he took their place, and he killed Lane and Olsen. By his own hand."

I was having difficulty understanding what he was trying to say, but I managed to get a little bit of it, it seemed. I managed to put a question into words, difficult as that was at the moment. "How could he not want to change the time stream?" I asked, thinking back on my own life, my own family. "Look at the suffering that was caused, twenty five years of fear and anger and hatred. Why couldn't he see that?" I was asking myself the last part; the part before it, I was relating to my own family. They were suddenly in my mind first and foremost; they were the only important thing at the moment. I wasn't concerned with matters of worldwide importance; I was a selfish teenage girl who wanted to have a better childhood.

"Precisely what I thought, Agent Queen."

Finally, I managed to realize that I had _no_ idea who this man was. "And who the hell are you, anyway?

He paused, looking right at me with the same cold eyes. This time, however, there was a slight hint of cruel amusement in them. I wanted to look away, but something inside me told me that I had to keep his gaze, the same way it told me that I couldn't fall down just then. Finally, he gave me an answer. "I am Batman."

I was about to argue him, to tell him that I knew who Batman was, when suddenly, it clicked; he was as old as my father. He was the _original_ Batman, Kamal's father. "Bruce Wayne?" I finally managed to whisper. "You're Bruce Wayne?"

"I am," was all he said in response, his eyes still cold and mocking.

"But, you're crazy," I managed to argue, finally getting my head back in order enough to form a complete sentence. "You're at Arkham, Kamal told me himself.

"Yes, well, my son has made quite a nuisance of himself recently."

That was what made my blood run cold; the casual dismissal of his own son. Now, I may have been a little innocent to that kind of emotional detachment, seeing as I came from an extremely emotional household, but it was still chilling to hear a father all but disowning his son. I couldn't even imagine my father doing the same for me. If anything, I'd just end up getting choked by his over protectiveness. That line of thought led me directly to my mother's actions, how she had tried to kill me and my father to get to the Pentana. It all started to fall into place; she was in Gotham, she saw what had happened, and she had gone there to fight with Pop and the rest of the League. After that, she had lost her cry, and Pop had lost his arm. After she lost her voice to cancer, she had never really smiled again, and I finally realized that she regretted not having been able to help Polaris in his mission. It made me feel somewhat sick. She didn't want me in this world, and she was willing to kill me here to change time then. To give me a better chance.

That was Mom; she always cared about her child, first and foremost.

"Then my mother," I finally said, just to think out loud, to hear my thoughts as solid words, "she was planning on finding the Pentana of Time to stop Uncle Hal. She wanted to finish what Polaris had started." My voice sounded weak and unsteady. I realized there were tears in my eyes and tried to force them away, but they refused to go. I was having enough trouble keeping them in my eyes and off my cheeks as it was.

"She was there on that day," Bruce repeated. "Green Lantern had gotten a tip from the Corps that there was going to be a time rift in Gotham. He called on your mother and me, two Leaguers working in Gotham at the time, to assist in investigating this time rift. Your mother wasn't there for the murders, however. I had asked her to continue to chase Polaris. She was a smart woman then, too; she called in for backup immediately while I went to go find Green Lantern. Unfortunately, that distracted the rest of the League from what Jordan was doing. Still, she wouldn't have survived if she hadn't."

I had to look away, dropping my head. Two tears managed to break free, but they were thankfully caught in my hair instead of falling to the ground, or tracing along my face where they could be seen. "No," was all I could say. "No, I don't believe you. I can't believe you."

"Ask your mother," he challenged. I felt like he had torn into my chest with that, and I glanced up finally, red eyes and all, and saw that he was taking a certain perverted pleasure in pressing my buttons the way he was. "She can't corroborate the exact details, but you'll find our stories are similar, if not identical." I reacted exactly as he had expected; I could see it in his eyes. That gave me enough anger to swallow my despair, get my head back together, and steel my voice again.

"I'd like to talk to her myself," I said. Bruce gestured to the handset sitting in the console, and I walked over, hoping that my legs weren't as shaky as they felt. I picked up the handset and put it to my ear quickly, to hide my shaking hands, and dialed home. After two rings, I heard the metallic, distorted imitation of my mother's voice through the Atlantean voice box.

"Hello?"

"Mom? It's Olivia."

"Olivia! I wasn't expecting you to call again so soon. But, it's good to hear your voice. Are you all right? You sound upset."

I couldn't help but smile somewhat; finally, a friendly voice, a friendly word. I needed it. "You remember how you told me to call if I was ever in trouble?"

Carefully, she answered, "Yes."

"Well…I think I got myself into some big trouble."

I had to rephrase my question three times before I could stutter it out, and it took her nearly an hour to explain to me what had happened that day, according to her. I felt sick by the time she was done, and I was leaning heavily on the console to prevent my knees from buckling. I finally said good-bye to her, making certain that I told her I loved her, and hung up. Bruce was still sitting there, staring at me, his eyes cold. I wished I hadn't hung up; I needed her support again. "I….I still can't believe it," I managed to whisper.

"You have to."

For some reason, I grew angry. I wasn't exactly sure why, at the time, but the words just started to pour out in a fit of rage I'd rarely felt in myself. "Do I?" I all but shouted.

"It's the truth. Hal Jordan must be brought to justice for the crimes he has committed."

"You have a pretty narrow definition of a 'crime'," I growled. "You're guilty of a crime, too. You're a traitor. Why the hell do you think I should do anything for you, huh? I know what happened six years ago; my father asked you for your help, to save my mother's voice. You had the technology, and you had her voice prints. Hell, you've been watching me for nineteen years now? But you didn't help, you let her lose her larynx, and you didn't do anything to stop it. A week after her surgery, you were in Arkham." I folded my arms and glared at him. "So, tell me, Brucey boy, why should I do a damn thing for you?"

"Because it is the right thing to do." I hadn't exactly expected an apology from him, but the least he could have done was explain why he had refused to help her. That response did nothing but make me even angrier, and that anger was starting to be tinged by sadness. I set my jaw and glared at him. He glared right back, unimpressed. "I thought you would be up to the task," he finally said. "I can see I was wrong."

"You can't let me go now," I challenged. "I'm your sharpshooter, remember?"

"You're useless if you won't accept your target. Whether he is your godfather or not, Hal Jordan has to be brought to justice."

"He's not my godfather," was the only reply I could think of at the time. "I wasn't baptized."

"That's your father's fault for that," Bruce said. "Maybe if your father had raised you with a few morals…"

I leveled my finger at him. "You keep my father out of this!" I shouted. "He was a better father than you ever were to your son."

"Oracle was wrong. You're not up for this kind of mission."

He pressed a button, and the door behind me slid open. I turned, and finally remembered that Todd and Aidan were in the chamber, as well. Todd looked somewhat uncomfortable; Aidan looked almost panicked. "You're free to go, Olivia."

"You can't let me go," I argued. "I'm your sharpshooter, remember?"

"I've had my eye on others," he said. "They'll be trained in your place."

I looked at him, then back at the open doorway, trying to sort out what was going on in my own head. I thought back to everything I had gone through, from Metropolis to Themyscira, Gotham to Canada, and everything in between. I thought of nearly losing my father, of the panic in knowing that my mother had run off alone, of nearly losing my own life because of an old Australian clock. Then, I thought of the reason I had done all those things, and it all started with a few typed words and a laptop. I knew the only question that would decide if I took the walk or not.

"I was told that if I was the one to wield your weapon, then the Meta-humans wouldn't have to live in fear anymore. My whole reason to be here is to get their rights back. Is that true, or was it just another move in your game to get me here in the first place?"

There was a long pause, as he looked at me. "They can get their rights back," he said.

I hated the response; I knew that if he told me it was a lie, I could have walked out of that chamber and never had a second thought. But, knowing that I was turning my back on the cause I had risked my freedom for, it was a choice I didn't want to have to regret the rest of my life. Not that shooting my uncle with a Neutralizer was going to make me feel any better inside.

I nodded. "Fine," I said. "I'll do it. We have to find Unc- Green Lantern and confront him about these murders."

Bruce stood up, leaning heavily on his cane. I wasn't surprised; he had taken a hell of a beating in his time, so I was told. "I'm glad you came to your senses," he said, as he walked over to me. "One more thing, though."

I could barely register his movement, he was so fast. Before I had a chance to even take a breath, he had turned me around, holding my back tight against his chest, the handle of his cane pressing painfully into my trachea. I reached up and tried to pull on his arms, trying to get the cane away from my throat, but his muscles were like wound cable. It was definitely more strength than my bow, and I'd managed to pull that back to 202 pounds of pressure every time I used it. "Don't ever call me Brucey boy again." I couldn't move or say anything, though I was ready to tell him I wouldn't, especially after he moved that fast. He finally let go, pushing me away as I was left on my knees, coughing as I struggled to gasp. It hurt. A minute later Aidan was kneeling next to me, his hand on my back, silent. He was afraid to cross Batman, as well, but not too afraid to see how I was. Again, there was confusion.

"The next phase begins in one week," he said, as he disappeared up the spiral staircase, and I managed to get to my feet, with Aidan's help. "Be ready."

The three of us made our way back out of the halls and tunnels, and into the afternoon light. It was cool even for October, and I was glad that I had on a suit jacket as well as the shirt. The wind was calm, though, and I was thankful for at least that. Still, I had a lot on my mind, the foremost of which was how my father was doing. I knew he was home, but I hadn't seen him since Zatanna had taken him for emergency surgery. I needed to know how he was doing.

A limo took us back to Valley Forge, where I spent the rest of the day in the gym, working out my frustrations on a punching bag. It felt good; I was sweating and my knuckles stung where they had been cut, and by the time I was finished my arms felt like I could barely lift them. It was early evening by that time, and I was looking forward to a nice hot shower and a little downtime before going to bed. As I was riding up in the elevator, though, Aidan got in, looking a bit surprised to see me.

"You look like a drowned rat," he said with a smile.

"I was venting," I replied.

"Yeah, I'd say. Does venting include bleeding?"

I looked down at my hands, to find that the blood had soaked through the wraps and was showing. "Oh, I, uh…must have been a little too rough. I wasn't really thinking about it."

"What were you thinking about?" he asked quietly, as we both got off the elevator. I looked over at him, and saw that he was serious.

"My family."

"You miss them."

"I haven't seen my father since before surgery," I told him, trying to keep the sad tone out of my voice. "It must be so hard on Mom, knowing that she's the reason why he's the way he is. I wish I could see them. Maybe seeing their daughter will brighten their spirits a little, you know?"

"I'd imagine it would," he said. "You want to go see them tonight?"

I waved my hand. "By the time I got there, it'd be three AM. Besides, I don't think that the Chief is going to appreciate his loose cannon running off like that."

"You won't be loose," Aidan replied. "You'd be with me. And I can get you there in twenty minutes."

I looked over at him as we stopped in the hallway, raising my eyebrow. I knew he was a speedster; I had been trying to hit him for the past week, and he'd managed to dodge every shot I made. I just never figured he'd be playing taxi for the new recruit. "Twenty minutes?"

"Fifteen, if I push it." He smiled. "You want to go?"

"Of course!"

I was glad when we finally came to a stop on the outskirts of the city. The trip there was somewhat harrowing, to say the least; I couldn't see a damn thing, as I had my face hidden in his shoulder the entire time. After I had watched him _phase_ us through a building, I really didn't want to watch the rest of the journey. Oddly enough, though, I had very little trouble breathing, when I actually remembered to.

His shoes were smoking as he finally skidded to a stop, putting me down as I looked around. I recognized the area, knew exactly where we were. He was looking around with curiosity, and I suspected he had never been to Seattle before.

"Is there someplace we could grab something to eat?" he asked, somewhat embarrassed. "That takes a lot out of me."

"There are a few places," I replied.

"Something sweet'd be good."

I smiled and told him to follow me, as we made our way through the city. The traffic was pretty light, as it was nearly eight. Finally, we made our way to the Creamery, one of the only shops in town that _didn't_ serve coffee. It was a little establishment, designed like an old fashioned ice cream stand from nearly a hundred years ago, but that was about the only thing lost in time. The patrons were definitely locals, and the industrial band playing through the speakers didn't fit the look of the place. Aidan went up to the front counter and looked up at the menu board.

"I need two of the triple fudge sundaes, a banana split, a coconut sundae, and a walnut fudge swirl." Finally, he turned to me. "What'll you have?"

I raised an eyebrow at him; I had seen him eat before, but never like this. "Just a vanilla cone."

It was only a few minutes later that we were struggling to balance everything as we made our way to one of the tables, and we started eating. Aidan apologized between giant spoonfuls, and was done his five dishes before I had even managed to finish one cone. That was fine; it looked like running that distance worked up an appetite, and as he was nice enough not only to get me out of Valley Forge, but get me here this quickly, I wasn't about to say anything. I waved off his apologies every time, and told him not to worry about it.

"So, you come to this place often?" he asked, looking around.

"Not really," I replied. "It's not exactly my scene here. Or my music, for that matter."

He made a wry face. "I'm kinda glad to hear it," he said. "So, where do you like to stay around here? I mean, as long as you're home, might as well enjoy it, right?"

I nodded, looking at him again. I couldn't tell what exactly he was getting at, or why he was acting so…_nice_ was the only way to put it. "There are a couple places," I said carefully. "There's a park by the bay, that's always nice but I haven't been there in a while. I used to go all the time when I was little, more recently I just walk past it."

Aidan stood up. "You want to check it out, then?"

I shrugged. "Only if we move at a reasonable speed." Thankfully, he accepted the condition, and we walked over to the park. The lights were on, and they were sparkling out on the bay, though I had a feeling they were reflecting off the sheen of sludge that sat overtop of the water. Still, walking through it as we were, it was kind of…well, it was relaxing, and almost romantic.

"Not a bad place here," he finally said, breaking the silence.

"No, not at all. I used to volunteer on the other side of the park."

"Salvation Army, I know." I turned to ask, when he held up his hand. "Chief had me look over parts of your file before Todd brought you in."

I shook my head, a bit annoyed. "I don't like being spied on," I said. I looked at my watch; it was getting close to ten. "I had better get home, before my parents go to sleep." We walked across the park, then down the small side streets, until I finally saw the house. It looked exactly as I remembered it, and there were a few lights still on; more importantly, they were on downstairs. I smiled somewhat, though I had a slightly queasy feeling in my stomach. It wasn't going to be easy explaining what had happened over the past week, and it was going to be even more difficult to explain my relationship to Aidan. However, I figured if Pop wasn't aware enough to ask, then Mom would be okay with whatever answers I would give. She was always level-headed.

I took out the key and was relieved to find that it still fit in the lock, and opened the door. The living room was cleaned up again, almost exactly as I had remembered it. The space between the furniture was a bit wider, but other than that, it was home.

"Who the hell- Oh." Pop came in from the kitchen, wheeling himself in with an old-fashioned wheelchair. I was partially impressed and partially exasperated; he never wanted to admit the damn handicap. I was more surprised, however, with how good he looked. There were barely any scars, and the only thing that I could see wrong with him was a cast on his left leg. "Olivia. Where the hell've you been?" His eyes then went to Aidan, and narrowed. "And who's this?"

"Pop, this is Aidan West."

"Wally's kid, I guess?"

Aidan nodded. "A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Queen," he stuttered.

"I'm sure it is." Pop's voice was sour, and I couldn't help but roll my eyes; he had been like that with every boy I had ever brought home, and even some that I didn't.

"What's all the commotion? Oh, Olivia." Mom came in from the kitchen, and I frowned. There was still a scar on her neck from the surgery, but she was no longer wearing the voice box I had heard only this morning. "I didn't expect you to be here. Where have you been?"

"Valley Forge," I said. I was starting to feel uncomfortable. The more questions that they asked, the more likely it would be that I would have to lie, and I really didn't want to lie to them.

"So, what are you doing with him?" Pop asked.

"He's taking care of me while I'm in Valley Forge," I said, wincing somewhat. I could tell by how deep his frown was growing that Pop didn't like what he was hearing.

"I work for the government," Aidan said. I shook my head; _wrong_ thing to tell him.

"Oh?"

"He works at the historical society there," I improvised. His eyes never left Aidan. I tried to get his attention, but it was useless. I looked up at Mom; she only shrugged. She knew there wasn't going to be much getting Pop's mind off of Aidan and his anger at him being near me. Like I said, I came from an emotional household.

Pop forced a yawn. "Well, it's late. I'm tired." He wheeled over to the door and opened it. "Bye." He was staring right at Aidan. We exchanged a glance, and he said good-bye before leaving. Pop slammed the door after him. I tried hard not to flinch, then not to look guilty when he leveled his glare at me. "And what the hell have you been getting into? I tell you, I let you out of this house for one week- one week!- and I don't even know what you're doing anymore."

I opened my mouth to reply, but Mom put her hand on my shoulder. "Why don't we have a talk?" she asked. "Up in your room."

I tried not to look relieved as I nodded, and we went upstairs. I could hear Pop, grumbling at the bottom of the steps while we went up and into my room. I would have been lying if I said that nothing had been moved since I had left for Canada, seeing as it was cleaned thoroughly, all my possessions put back into place. "You didn't have to do that, Mom," I said, as I sat down on the bed, her next to me.

"It was a mess," she said, turning to look at me. "Now, what's been going on? You're father's been worried sick, and so have I."

I looked around the room; I knew that there were listening devices around, but I also knew there was no way in hell I was going to be able to find them if Batman had planted them, more than likely himself. It explained who trashed the house.

"I don't think we should talk here," I said, somewhat nervously. "I just…don't feel comfortable. You want to get some fresh air or something?"

Mom looked at me for a moment, then nodded carefully. I could see worry growing deeper into her face, and it hurt. It was the last thing I had wanted; I just wanted her back home, and safe. That was what the last couple weeks had been about. I had my priorities straight. We stood up and went back downstairs. "We'll be back, Ollie."

The two of us slipped out quickly, walking the block and a half to the nearest Starbucks. I had ordered my double mocha latte, one shot of caramel syrup and extra whipped cream. Mom just had tea. I sipped at it a little bit, looking around. I wasn't sure what I was expecting to see, but I had the distinct sense that I was being followed. I chalked it up to paranoia.

"Now, what's this about, Olivia?"

I winced. "Please, you have to promise not to tell Pop. He'll have a heart attack."

She gave me a patient look. "I'll decide whether or not to tell your father. What's wrong?"

I took a deep breath and looked down at the table. "The reason the house was trashed was because the MCC was trying to get my attention. They wanted me to join them…and I kinda did. That's where I met Aidan."

"You're right," she said. "We don't tell your father."

I nodded, somewhat relieved. One less reason for him to try and keep me locked up in the house (and I knew he would try the first chance he got). "They've got this new weapon, some kind of rifle that drains Meta-humans of their powers. If I had it, I could prevent Gotham again. The Meta-humans could have their rights back."

The cynical look on my mother's face seemed horribly out of place. "No, instead you take their powers and they just become normal people, is that it?" she demanded.

"No, not at all! I just protect the people from the dangerous Meta-humans."

"You mean, the vigilantes."

"No. I mean the ones who destroy Gotham." She was silent for a minute, thinking. "By the way, when did you get your throat fixed?"

She frowned at me. "What do you mean?"

It was my turn to frown; she was genuinely confused, as was I. "Your voice box. The one you got in Atlantis."

"Olivia, I've never been to Atlantis."

Her words shocked me, and for a few moments, I couldn't do much but stare. "But, the cancer…and the surgery…"

"Yes?"

"And you lost your voice!"

She shook her head. "No. I had the surgery in time. Olivia, are you feeling all right?"

I definitely wasn't. My head was starting to spin, as I tried to get an idea of what exactly was going on. "Mom, when was the last time you went to Las Vegas?"

"Las Vegas?" I could see that she wasn't following my line of questioning. "Not since before you were born."

"Then, what happened to Pop?"

"The car accident." She reached over and put her hand on my forehead, then looked at my eyes. I couldn't meet her gaze; I was too confused. Somewhat glad, but still confused. "I think we better get you back home, honey. You look a little pale."

"I feel a little pale," I said. "I was in Las Vegas just last week, looking for you. You went to Atlantis to get your voice back, and Pop and I tracked you there. And…"

She stood up and put her hands on my shoulders, helping me to my feet. "Come on, Olivia, let's go home. I think you might need to lie down for a little bit, get something hot to eat."

It sounded like a good idea, especially since my head was swimming. As we walked home, I started to think that maybe I _had_ lost my mind. I was muttering to myself for a little while, until I could get out a rational sentence. "The house was trashed. The MCC did that, you remember that, right?"

"Yes, but it wasn't the first time. This neighborhood has its bad times."

I frowned again; the puzzle was getting more and more complex. "When?"

"The day your father and I brought you home from the hospital." She opened the door and led me inside. Pop was sitting in the living room, and looked over when we came in the door.

"About time you girls got back," he grumbled. He must have seen the dazed look on my face. "Olivia, what's wrong?"

I looked up; the pieces fit a little too well. His injuries were consistent with a car accident, not a sonic screech at point blank range. And he and Mom were both home, and she hadn't seemed guilty. I was simultaneously relieved and worried. My family was staying together, but only because something had happened; someone had changed the past.

"I…I don't think I feel very well," I managed to say. "I thought…I mean Mom lost her voice…and you…in Gotham…"

"I haven't been to Gotham for years," Pop said, with a sour look on his face. "Before you were born."

"I-I think I'm gonna go lie down," I said. Slowly, I managed to get up the stairs and to my room, where I collapsed onto the bed, staring at the ceiling. Time had changed; I knew it had. I remembered clearly seeing Mom in Atlantis, and in Las Vegas. I remember the panic and guilt I felt in Gotham, and then again in Las Vegas. I remembered Zatanna, and going through her room. Still, they seemed to remember nothing of it. It could have been that they blocked out the memories, fabricating new ones to take their places, but that didn't explain Pop's miraculous recovery, or Mom's ability to speak again.

Thoroughly confused, I rolled over. It was then that I realized that I was definitely in another time. Hanging on the wall in a frame was my high school diploma that I never received. Closing my eyes tightly, I wished that everything would right itself, and managed to finally get to sleep.

I woke up late the next morning, and had an odd sense of being out of place when I did. I felt a couple years younger, as light was streaming in through the casement window onto the wall. I sat up, rubbing my eyes as I looked around my room. Again, my eyes fell on the diploma, and I knew that I had to find out who was behind this sudden change in time, and why they were doing it. I got dressed, glad to be in jeans and a t-shirt again, and made my way downstairs. Pop was already in the living room, Mom in the kitchen. I said good morning and sat down at the table, as she handed me a plate of pancakes.

There really is nothing like coming home to a good home-cooked meal, and after a week of eating the excuse for food that the MCC had, it was an incredible way to wake up. I was helping Mom with the dishes when I suddenly heard Pop say from the other room, "Oh, shit."

I frowned, walking into the living room. The TV was on, and a news splash screen was showing a large explosion. The anchor was stuttering, as he tried to explain something about New York. I squinted, and tried to make out anything I could, but the entire screen was a haze of clouds. It was then that I heard it; New York had been struck by an ICBM, and it was presumed that it was a nuclear attack. I felt my stomach twist over on itself.

"This shouldn't have happened," I said. "This is all wrong." I knew that the house was wired; and I sure as hell knew that someone was watching. "Chief, I know you're there," I said, as Mom and Pop both looked at me. They glanced at each other; they thought I had lost my mind. "Don't play around, this is serious, you know how to get in touch with me!" I waited, and sighed when there was no answer, no phone call. Then, another thought hit me. When Todd had first told me she had been spying on me, she said that she wasn't the one there. But I knew someone who could be there and not seen. "Aidan!"

He made me wait a moment before he suddenly appeared, slowing down enough for me to see him. "All right, you caught me," he said, then backed up a step as Pop turned around. "Oh, shit." He saw the TV.

"This isn't right," I said. "Someone's changed the time stream."

"Someone's bombed New York!" he exclaimed. "I'm not really all that good at handling pressure like this."

I shook my head. "Aidan, don't you understand!" I demanded. "Someone changed the time stream. New York wasn't supposed to be blown up! If we can figure out what's happening with the time stream, we can fix this and it'll never happen."

Aidan was still staring at the TV. "It's been blown up," he said.

"Aidan!"

He blinked, then looked at me. "Huh?"

"Get me back to Valley Forge," I demanded, not caring how rude I was being. "I have to find out what's happening. I need to talk to Oracle; she'll have the answers."

"What answers?"

"The time stream! Mom and Pop never went to Las Vegas."

He frowned. "But they did…" Suddenly, his eyes widened. "Oh." My parents were staring at the both of us.

"I'm sorry to have to run out like this," I told them. I gave them both a quick hug. "I have to find out what's happening. Your lives were changed, and I have to find out why mine didn't. I love you." I turned to Aidan. "Ready?"

He nodded, picking me up again as we sped back to Valley Forge. I kept my eyes closed the entire way there; I didn't want to see what he was doing this time. Fifteen minutes later, we were back in Valley Forge, and Aidan got me access into the lowest levels of MCC headquarters, which was understandably empty. He ran up to get something to eat (apologizing for it again) while I entered the large, dome-like chamber. Todd was sitting down at the single chair in the middle of the room, and I walked up behind her.

"I need to talk to Oracle," I said.

"I am here, Agent Queen."

"Oracle, what the hell is going on with time?" I demanded.

"I do not understand."

"I know someone's been changing it," I told it. "My parents don't remember anything about Las Vegas, or Atlantis, or anything. Their memories were changed!"

"Their memories coincide with my database," the feminine voice said. "Your parents have not been to Las Vegas in twenty seven years. And they were never in Atlantis."

I took a step back, and was somewhat surprised when Aidan took my shoulders. I realized then that I had started to fall. Through all this, Todd was motionless and silent. "I don't believe it," I said. "I can't. This is wrong! Aidan, you remember, right?"

"Yeah," he said carefully.

"Oracle, when was I last in Las Vegas?" I asked.

"You have never been there. It would be in your file if you had."

"Can I see my file?"

"There are no physical copies," Oracle responded.

I felt sick. Someone was messing with my head, and Aidan's. "Something changed," I said, just to say something. I looked up, at Aidan. "You think something might have happened when we phased through those buildings?"

He shrugged slightly. "I don't know," he said. "I think we should be worried about New York right now, though."

I sighed and turned. "Aidan, I think that what happened is horrible, but going to New York right now isn't going to do much good except turn my skin purple."

Oracle's synthesized voice broke in. "Agent Queen, the Chief wishes to speak with you."

There was a slight pause. "Queen?"

"I'm here," I managed to say.

"You still have the weapon?"

"Yeah."

"Now's your chance." The computer showed an image of what had once been New York City. The entire vicinity was surrounded by a green glow, and hovering above it was Uncle Hal, looking strained as he struggled to keep the bubble intact. "Get to New York City and take him down. It's time to make him pay for his crimes."

I could only stare for a few moments more, until Aidan squeezed my shoulder. "He's expecting you to give him an answer," he said softly.

I had difficulty answering. Yes, I needed to do it; I had told him that I would, and if Uncle Hal _had_ been the murderer twenty five years ago, I certainly wanted to make certain that things were set straight. Still, he was trying to save people, I could see that. I also knew that if I didn't do it, someone else would. "All right," I said. Aidan disappeared for a moment, reappearing with the rifle. I took it from him and hefted it. "We'll be there shortly. Get me an outside phone line."

"You have one."

"Dial Kamal."

There was a pause. I waited as Minshi answered. "Wayne Residence."

"I need to speak with Batman." I said. Behind me, I heard Aidan take in a sharp breath. I winced. There were only a few moments of dead air, until Kamal answered.

"Who is this?"

"It's Olivia." I paused, waiting to see what kind of reaction I would get.

"Olivia. What do you want?" His voice was cold. Very cold.

"You have planes, right?" I asked. "Can I borrow one? I need to get to New York."

"We'll be there in fifteen minutes."

"No need," I said, as I felt Aidan grabbing me again. I grinned at him for a moment. "You are enjoying all this manhandling far too much," I said.

He only smiled, and we took off, arriving in Wayne Manor only a few moments later. Once I was down, however, Kamal and Aidan glanced at each other, then squared off. I had forgotten; they had already fought once before.

"You boys play nice," I said. "I have something I have to get done. I need a plane."

Kamal turned to me, glaring daggers. I glared back; I didn't have time for whatever petty anger he might have been nursing at the moment. "You expect me to help you?"

"Actually, yeah, I do." He led us down into the Batcave, threatening Aidan with physical nightmares if he so much as touched anything. He promptly removed himself from the scene. There was a new person, however, a kid even younger than me, with the kind of creepy calm you see on a madman's face. He looked at me, and I shivered slightly. "I have an important mission, and I need your help. It'll help the Meta-humans get their rights back, if it succeeds."

"You want to shoot Green Lantern," the boy said, his voice eerily calm and quiet. I glared at him, and I knew why he looked the way he did; he was a mind reader, and he had read my mind. Now, I'm not exactly a patient person to begin with, and I dislike being spied on, but having someone in my mind is something I absolutely despise.

I leveled a finger at him. "You stay out of my head, freak," I said. I tried not to blush, as I added, "Especially anything before yesterday."

"You should have used protection."

I was about to defend myself, when I realized that he had done it again. "Damn it, out of my head!" I felt the floor shake, and I looked over as a large platform came up from the cave floor. On it was a very sleek-looking winged vehicle.

"There's room for three," he said, and I jumped in, knowing that I had no other real options open to me. I also knew that Kamal would try and stop me when I tried to make my move. All I had to do was move when he was busy. The wing flew out of the cave at barely subsonic speeds, and we were over New York in just under three minutes. Kamal pulled the wing up next to Uncle Hal, and popped the top.

"Lantern!" he shouted, and Uncle Hal turned. I leveled the gun. Kamal glared at me. "Don't you dare pull that trigger, Olivia. You do that, and the radiation he's been containing will spread over the entire country. You'll be killing millions."

I kept my aim, but I couldn't bring myself to fire; Kamal was right. I watched as Hal closed his eyes, forcing the dome to form into a sphere, taking the contaminated air up, out of the atmosphere and into space. It wasn't long until he came back, and I saw my chance; he was exhausted. Setting my teeth and ignoring the queasiness in my stomach, I aimed and fired.

Unfortunately, the wing moved, disrupting my aim. I looked over as Kamal pulled back on the stick. I knew that I'd never be able to get a clear shot while he was in control, and I didn't want to fire on him. He wasn't my target. Looking at my uncle, I realized that there was very little choice. He had gone back in time, and now time was starting to change. At that point, my life was inconsequential; if I succeeded, then time would go back the way it was, and I would be alive again. Much the same way Mom had not worried about our deaths when she had been going after the Pentana of Time. Without so much as a glance, I leapt out of the wing, falling down towards the ground. I aimed and fired again, but not before Kamal had gotten in the way; comparatively, it didn't take much to drain his will, and he was left dangling at the end of his line, looking down at the ground below. Hal saw this, and went down to grab him. I was still falling, and I aimed for another shot, when I felt a sudden jolt, and stopped dead in midair. Looking up, I saw the kid sitting in the wing, staring at me. I glared.

"You must stop this," he said, his voice still calm. I was starting to get really creeped out by him. "You cannot continue, or you will be losing more than one life today."

"Uncle Hal won't die from this," I said, aiming again, as he got Kamal back into the wing.

"I was not talking about another life apart from your own," he said. "You have two minds, one in your head and one in your womb. If you do this, you will kill your child."

That was the last thing I had been expecting him to say. I stopped short, staring at him, forgetting about what was going on around me- hell, I forgot I was dangling in midair. "I'm pregnant?" was all I could manage to whisper. "No. When? How?"

"Two nights ago," he said. "I told you."

"There is no way in hell you would know that quickly," I replied, as I felt my heart beating faster. I was wondering if he was right. If it was true. I was wondering how Aidan would handle it.

"I have seen it. You have to stop."

By then, Uncle Hal had noted me, and saw the paled look on my face. "Olivia?" He eyed the cannon.

I looked up at him, still in a daze. I was _pregnant_. "You have to leave," I said. "Please, Uncle Hal, you have to go, get out of here, stay out of sight for a while."

"What are you talking about?" he asked.

I sighed. I couldn't lie to him; I couldn't do much of anything at that point. I was too scared, in almost complete shock. "I was sent here by the MCC to bring you in for your part in the murders in Gotham," I told him, though I barely remember the words coming from me. "Bruce Wayne sent me to find you."

His eyes narrowed, and he took off, towards Gotham. I couldn't feel enough to regret what I had said, or to understand what I had done. I was in shock. I looked up to find the wing gone; the kid and I were the only ones left, dangling in midair. I didn't care. "I need to get back to Valley Forge. Aidan will be there."

It was only a few moments later that I was on the ground again, and I was starting to recover from the news. I had my wits again, at least, to look around before heading down into the base. "Aidan?"

His eyes appeared over one of the small wooden fences. "Yeah?"

"We have a very, very big problem," I said, walking towards him.

"Is Batman here?" he asked.

"No." With that, he stood up entirely, as I reached him. "Look, Aidan, we have a problem." I really didn't know what to say; I knew he wasn't going to be expecting what I was about to tell him, and I didn't have a really nice way of saying it, either. "You and I are going to be parents."

There was a blank look on his face, replaced by shock. "You're pregnant?"

I nodded. Before I could say anything else, though, the kid had disappeared. I looked around, but I couldn't see him. "That creepy kid who brought me here told me. He's got some kind of weird see-the-future powers or something."

"Wait," Aidan said, his voice still ghostly. "You're pregnant?"

"Yes!" I was growing exasperated, until I realized just what I was saying- again. I put my arms over my stomach and looked down. It was only two days, but I suddenly felt sick, like there was something there that shouldn't be. Then maternal instinct took over. "We've gotta find out what's going on with the time disturbance. Our baby isn't going to grow up in the wrong time."

"Our baby?" He was tasting the words for the first time, and I started to see panic in his face. I started to feel sick, as I thought that maybe, he'd run off. There would be no chance I'd be able to catch him, either. If he wanted to leave me alone, there wasn't going to be much I could do to stop him. His eyes glazed over for a moment, then snapped back. "Are you sure you're pregnant?"

"We'll find out for certain once this is done," I told him. Just then, both of our cell phones rang. I frowned, as did he, and we looked down at the caller ID.

"It's Kamal," I said, at the same time he said, "It's the Chief."

We both answered simultaneously, and we were both greeted by the same terse order. "Get to Gotham, now!" Both lines hung up. We looked at each other, somewhat confused, slightly amused. Aidan picked me up again, much more carefully than he had any of the other times, and we were once again taking the trip for Valley Forge to Gotham. By the time we had found the Waynes, they were facing off on the banks of the Gotham River, Uncle Hal lying unconscious in a mass of what looked like yellow cellophane.

Kamal turned to me. "You said there was a time disturbance?" he asked. I nodded.

"There's only one man who knows what this is all about," Bruce said, as he looked down at Uncle Hal.

"Chief, there's something-" Aidan was cut off by a stare from Bruce, a stare that kept him in place while the older man stalked forward.

"You have a problem, West?" he asked.

I was about to jump in, when Kamal put a hand on my shoulder. "Don't," he said, as Aidan finally took off. I could understand why; he _had_ nearly choked me the day before, and there was no way he wanted to get on the wrong side of that.

I looked up at Kamal. His eyes were somewhat wild, and there was anger still in them as he looked at me. "Don't do that to him," I told Bruce. "He's had a really hard day so far. He's still in shock that he's going to be a father."

Kamal looked stunned. "You're pregnant?" he asked.

"According to Creepy Boy." I completely ignored the fact that he had assumed I was the mother.

"We don't have time for this," Bruce said. "We need to get him someplace safe where we can question him. Queen, cover him. Kamal, help me get him inside."

I held the rifle up again, as both men lifted my uncle and dragged him into the asylum, past dilapidated metal doors and debris in the halls. Finally, they brought him to a padded cell, and put him into a straight jacket. I just held the rifle pointed at him, though I wasn't sure any longer if I'd be able to actually fire. I was feeling very alone and was starting to feel very afraid. Kamal knelt down next to him, frowning. "I wouldn't wake him yet," he said. "He seems to be in some sort of deep REM cycle."

"What does that mean?" I demanded.

Kamal turned to look at me. "I think he's in some kind of dream state."

"Okay, not good."

Bruce only grunted. "Keep an eye on him."

I nodded, but my mind was anywhere but there. I was still thinking about my baby. I had to remind myself a couple times that I might not be pregnant at all, though for some reason, I highly doubted it. The creepy people were usually right. My mind started to turn to the more practical; I would need a place to live, a steady, safe job that would give me a chance to be with my child. I needed to make certain that Aidan wouldn't run off. The last fear was starting to melt away slowly, however. The way he had acted towards me the past three days, I felt that he wasn't about to run off. He cared.

Suddenly, Uncle Hal began to shudder, then convulse. I aimed the rifle, but I didn't know what exactly I was going to do with it. "What's happening?"

Neither man was paying attention to me. "Get him to the infirmary," Bruce ordered, as they lifted him, straight jacket and all, and carried him out past me. I followed, not being able to do much else. It wasn't very far to the infirmary, as Bruce held him down and Kamal started to search through the medicine cabinets. Finally, he came back with a bottle and a syringe. I closed my eyes, and felt Kamal touch my shoulder. He had his cape over my face, and finally pulled it back when his father had tossed away the syringe. "That ought to work."

Uncle Hal was lying on his side, still in the straight jacket and still wound in yellow, drooling as his eyes moved under his eyelids. Seeing that was all I could take. I don't remember much of what happened, just that I dropped the rifle and put my hands over my face, trembling horribly. My head was swimming, and I think I was muttering, though I don't remember much of what I said except that I was very desperate for God to step in and do something.

"Get a hold of yourself!"

I looked up, right into Bruce's face, and felt my worried turning into full-blown fear. My mind jump started again, as I took a step back. "Go down the hall, three doors to your right, and find some water. Bring it back to the cell."

I nodded, picked up the rifle from the floor, made my way quickly down the hall. I sat down inside the door for a moment to catch my breath and try to get my head back on straight. It took a minute or so, but I managed to calm down enough to think again, and I grabbed a dusty bag and filled it with sealed bottles of water. I finally made my way back, where Bruce had finally woken Hal. He was in the process of removing the restraints when Uncle Hal's eyes went wide.

"Oa's in trouble," he said.

"Oa?"

There was suddenly a movement from the shadows, and the creepy kid walked out of them. I shuddered, and turned the rifle on him. I wasn't sure what exactly I was gonna do with it, but I was an archer, and it felt good to point something dangerous at someone. "Oa is in need of your help. If you do not go, then the battery will crack. The universe itself is in jeopardy."

Hal looked around, as did I. Kamal was still there, but Bruce had disappeared. I shook my head to myself; all his talk, and he could do little but pick on a teenage girl and a guy in a straight jacket. Coward. Uncle Hal looked at us. "I can't ask you to follow me."

"If there's trouble, I'm with you," Kamal said.

I nodded. "If the universe is in danger, it really doesn't give my baby much of a chance, does it?" I got a surprised look from Hal, before he encased us all in one of his green bubbles, and we were off into space. Mind you, not only had I never been in space before, but we were going _really_ fast. I hid my eyes again, waiting for the journey to be over.

Finally, it was, and I was standing on what could only be described as a large, rocky moon. Lording over the planetoid was a giant citadel, made entirely of gold. There was a main cannon at the top that was peeled back, as though someone had reached in and pulled. As we had come in, there was a ring of dead bodies surrounding the planetoid, all wearing the same outfits of the Green Lantern Corps.

Uncle Hal went up to the main door, looking at it. "Locked," he said. Kamal had started to scale the wall, so I went over and looked at the lock. It was a pretty complex thing, electronic of course.

"Don't use that panel," the kid said. "Use the one beneath it."

I frowned, looking down. There was a smaller door, with another panel, this one with fewer switches. I took a couple steps back and pulled out my bow, sending a charged arrow bolt right into it. The electronics fried under the barrage, and the door slid open obediently. I smiled and followed behind Uncle Hal, as we started to sprint down the empty golden halls.

Finally, we came to a fork in the hall. Two hallways branched off from the main one that kept us going straight ahead. "Left would take us to the main chambers," Hal said. "We want to go straight. That's where the main power battery is."

I was about to step forward, when I suddenly heard something, and saw a flash of motion out of the corner of my eye. There were constructs there, robotic looking things that came for us. I pulled and fired quickly, letting loose more electricity. The arrows affected them, and Kamal's usual array of unique weapons managed to destroy one, but the other fired straight at me. The shot seemed to be fired in slow motion, as I was suddenly _very_ aware that my life was linked to my baby's- anything that happened to me would happen to it, too. I moved out of the way quickly, the blast merely singing my clothes just above my chest. I let another arrow fly, managing to destroy it.

"Damn it, they'd have to be yellow," Hal said.

"Olivia, what can you do with that bow?" Kamal asked.

I shrugged. "Pretty much anything I want to," I said.

"Can you make them a different color?"

I thought for a moment, looking at the bow. "I think so, I should be able to make some sort of dye compound that'll explode on impact, would that work?"

"As long as it doesn't make them more yellow, yeah," Uncle Hal said. I smiled, and we made our way down the central hall. I turned to find Kamal gone. The three of us were sprinting now, the kid having followed, walking calmly, flipping a coin in his hand. I rolled my eyes; the _least_ he could do would be help. It would be nice if he stopped being so damn creepy, too.

As we got to the door of the main battery's chamber, there were two more of the energy beings waiting. I didn't give them a chance to fire first, as I pulled back, creating two arrows, firing simultaneously. Obediently, they hit their marks, and the dyes spread out over them. Uncle Hal did the rest, slicing them in half with the energy from his ring. I did the same for the door, though it took considerably more than one shot to overcome the color.

I turned as Uncle Hal went to work on the door, and just barely dodged another blast from one of the constructs. I knew that Uncle Hal was out of this one- it was gonna be me against them, and I wasn't about to lose. I fired warheads at them, watched as one exploded instantaneously, the other being a bit more stubborn before it, too, was taken care of. By then, Uncle Hal had gotten the door opened, and we ran inside.

The main power battery's cavern was massive, the entire height of the citadel, with catwalks all over. The battery itself was almost blinding as it pulsed in the center. The color wasn't uniform, though; it was shifting from green to blue and back again.

"Yellow energy is being drained from the battery," Uncle Hal said, his voice sounded disturbed.

"That's good, isn't it?"

"No. It means someone is draining all the yellow energy."

"I was wondering when you'd show up, Jordan."

We both turned, when we heard the voice. Coming around from the other side of the battery was my uncle…sort of. He was much older and worse for wear. He wore the costume of a Green Lantern, but it was all yellow. I frowned. Again, my head was spinning. "Uncle Hal?"

"Olivia."

"You look terrible."

He smiled, just slightly, and before my eyes, his appearance shifted. He was much younger. "Is this better?"

I floundered. "Uh, I guess so…"

"Good. Now, go on. You don't need to be here to see this."

I knew what was about to happen, and I knew that there wasn't much I could have done. I didn't want to see either one of them die, and I had the distinct feeling that was what this fight was going to come to. I let loose an arrow at the floor between them, blinding everyone in the area, including myself. Unfortunately, it was a stupid move, as when I looked back, two identical Green Lanterns were standing there.

"Olivia, get out of here, before you get hurt!" one cried to me.

"Yes. You have to go."

I looked between them, my aim wavering. I needed to tell who was who, to know which one was the uncle I had known for the past nineteen years. "Why?" I demanded, looking at them both.

"He'll kill you," one said.

The other didn't even bother to look at me. "Because you're pregnant. It's too dangerous to be here."

I knew who was who. The easiest way, in my mind, to separate the real from the fake was to have an arrow sticking out of the fake. I let one shot go, quickly, and watched as one stumbled back, clutching the wound in pain. The illusion faded, as he glared at me angrily. I had no chance to move out of the way, as I was suddenly enveloped in a burst of yellow light.

The next thing I realized, I was sitting in an old style courthouse, but it was completely bizarre and surreal. I was in the audience, as was Kamal, and my mother and father, both looking young and healthy. Bruce was also there, in the Batman costume, and Uncle Hal, seated at a desk in the front. On the other side was another desk, with a man in green robes. At the judge's bench, and in every seat on the jury, was the kid. In fact, he was in every other role in the court, as well. The man in green stood up. Kamal leaned over to me. "The Spectre," he whispered.

"Gentlemen of the court," he said, his voice hollow and echoing in the small room. "We are here today to judge the guilt of one man: Hal Jordan. The charges are murder, slaughter, and crimes against not only creation, but against the Creator." I looked over at Uncle Hal. He seemed genuinely surprised, and somewhat annoyed. "The prosecution would like to call it's first witness, Mr. Bruce Wayne."

I watched as the procession began, as Bruce recounted his story of what had happened that day in Gotham. Uncle Hal tried to explain, but the kid kept cutting him off. He even threatened to kick him out at one point and appoint someone else to represent him. I rolled my eyes and tried to stay awake, but it was difficult. After Bruce was done, Mom was called to the stand, and she told her side of the story. Pop was next, even though he wasn't there at the time; the Spectre just asked him questions about his friendship to Uncle Hal, and I was silently happy that he was giving the robed freak a hard time.

The next witness he called made me feel sick. She walked in from the back, a single, well-placed shot in the middle of her forehead, the back of her head blown out. Lois sat down, as the Spectre explained what he wanted out of her. She lowered her eyes, and I had to look away. I was going to be sick. Uncle Hal was in true form; he demanded that the court just say he killed them so that they (I was guessing that Jimmy Olsen was there, somewhere, as well) wouldn't have to testify. Not that the copies of one person were any clue, but having a dead woman walk in and having my mother without a scar and my father with his right arm intact made the whole place seem just shy of crazy.

The next thing I knew, my name was being called. I made my way up to the stand and sit down, as the Spectre glided over to me. It was then that I finally found out why everything was surreal; I'm dead. That was about as far as I got; I was dead, my baby was dead. Understandably, I was upset. I think they had to carry me back to the seats, and I think I remember Kamal being dragged out when I was up on the stand. I was surprised; I would have thought, after _shooting_ him, that he would hate me, but it turned out, he didn't. He even apologized for anything he may have done to me while I- _we­_- had been alive.

The trial lasted for days, most of which were taken up by one witness, some little blue munchkin known as Ganthet as he tried to explain the specifics of chronal mechanics. I really didn't pay much attention. Finally, when he had finished his explanation, and had been questioned by both sides a couple times, the kid called a recess of the jury.

"Come on," Kamal said, taking my arm. "Let's get some fresh air."

"Why?" I demanded, even though I still got up and followed him. As we went out of the single door, we were standing on a long set of marble steps, with large columns disappearing into a blue fog above us. The ground was made of marble, stretching out into the blue fog.

"Are you all right?"

"Do I seem all right to you?" I demanded. "My baby…"

"I know." He looked around. "But there might be someone who knows what's going on, and what's going to happen after this." I followed his eyes, and saw that he was looking at one of the copies of the kid, in a bailiff's uniform. We both walked up to him, cornering him against one of the pillars.

"You're going to answer some questions for us," I said, leaning in close. He looked at me, and I could see confusion in his face. Good. "Now, where the hell are we?"

"I'm not sure," he replied.

"What's going to happen after this?" Kamal said, stepping forward just a little. I bristled somewhat, but waited.

"Well, there are a few things that could happen, depending on what the jury's verdict is."

"You _are_ the jury," I pointed out, crossing my arms.

"I'm not!" the boy insisted. "But, there are quite a few things that could happen, depending on how badly the time stream was changed and what the defendant might or might not be found guilty of…"

I had heard enough. I grabbed him by the collar, lifted him off his feet and slammed him into the column. He winced as his skull hit the marble, and I shook him once to get his attention back on me. "Listen, I'm going to make this perfectly clear; I want my baby to live. Now, you're either going to tell me the loophole in this whole mess that is going to make that happen, or I'm going to break every bone in your body until I find it!"

"Olivia," Kamal said, putting his hand on my arm, but I shrugged him off. I was glaring at the kid, making damn certain he knew I wasn't kidding around. I _would_ tear him apart. Before I had a chance to get started, however, there was a loud, ringing bell sound from inside.

"The jury's reached a verdict," he said. I glared at him for a moment longer, then let him drop to the ground. Kamal was next to me, and I could see he was somewhat surprised. I was a little pissed at that too; he didn't think I had it in me. He shouldn't have doubted.

Inside, I sat back down, watching angrily. The jury came back with a verdict of guilty to five counts of murder (including my child), mass slaughter, and trying to tamper with creation. The kid went on some long, lengthy speech that I didn't pay attention to; I was too shocked. Uncle Hal looked utterly defeated, standing there with his head down, leaning against the table. The kid went over to the Spectre, reached up, and removed his cloak. Underneath was a plain man, wearing a suit.

"What the hell is going on?" I demanded, trying to stand up. Kamal stopped me.

"This is a matter out of mortal hands," he said. "Just be quiet."

"That's my uncle!"

"Not anymore."

I watched helplessly as the kid carried the cloak over and faced Uncle Hal, declaring that this was his punishment. He put the cloak over, and there was a sudden howling, as he disappeared in the cloak. I felt a fingernail break as I grasped the back of the chair in front of me too tightly, but I didn't care; I _was_ dead, after all.

"That's it?" I demanded, standing up too quickly for Kamal to stop me. "You bring us here and now you just expect us to move on, after you've deigned our deaths wrong? I'm not going to accept that."

The kid looked at me, still calm. Still damn creepy. "The Multiverse has been irreversibly altered," he said. "The only solution I can see is for it to be restarted; the criminal will be removed and will not be able to affect the time stream as he did." As he finished speaking, there was a flash of light as the room shook, the ceiling opening up. A large hand came down from the fog, in a fist, then turned upwards. When it opened, sand started to pour out from it, forming into stars, and there was another flash of light when the hand was empty. That was it. The Multiverse had been remade, and our universe had been removed, which means that everything we did, never happened. I never even existed. Instead, there was another world, another time, another place, another hero, and another crisis. It turns out, there's always a crisis, whether major or minor. As long as there is a crisis to avert, there will always be heroes.


End file.
